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Department of Planning, Industry and Environment 4 Parramatta Square 12 Darcy Street PARRAMATTA NSW 2150 28 July 2020 Mandana Mazaheri Planning Officer Planning & Assessment | Department of Planning, Industry and Environment 4 Parramatta Square 12 Darcy Street PARRAMATTA NSW 2150 Email: www.dpie.nsw.gov.au Shellharbour City Council Submission – Tallawarra B (MP07_0124-Mod-2) Dear Mandana Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the proposed modification to the Tallawarra B Power Station application (MP07_0124-Mod-2). This submission has been prepared by Council staff. Time constraints did not allow the submission to be endorsed by the full Council. Notwithstanding. Shellharbour City Council (Council) acknowledges and is grateful for the extension of time granted by the Department to prepare and lodge this submission. Council has consistently collaborated with the applicant, CASA and the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (your Department) to ensure the proposed Open Cycle Gas Turbine is compatible with the Shellharbour Airport operations, the health of Lake Illawarra and the visual amenity of those areas within the city that look across the Lake to the subject land. It is understood that the Modification Application is seeking approval to extend the Project Approval lapse date by two years and amend the description of the proposal in condition 1.5 so that a single open cycle gas turbine may be used for the power plant. Having reviewed and carefully assessed the information accompanying the application Council has identified a number of matters of concern. These matters are discussed in detail below. Request to extend the Project Approval lapse date by two years: On 14 May 2020, s4.53 of the EPA Act was amended to provide that if a development consent commenced operation before 25 March 2020 and has not lapsed, it will now lapse 2 years after the date on which it would otherwise have lapsed. Clause 4.53(1)(c) now reads: 4.53 Lapsing of consent (1) A development consent lapses— (c) 2 years after the date on which the development consent would otherwise have lapsed if the development consent commenced operation before, and has not lapsed at, the commencement of the prescribed period. - 2 - Department of Planning, Industry and Environment Shellharbour City Council Submission – Tallawarra B (MP07_0124-Mod-2) _______________________________________________________________________________ (8) In this section— prescribed period means the period commencing on 25 March 2020 and ending on 25 March 2022. Given that the original consent was issued on December 2010 and was not due to lapse until December 2020 Clause 4.25(1)(a) is applicable and the approval will subsequently now lapse December 2022. Council is of the opinion that the change in legislation therefore removes the need to request the extension to the consent as part of this application (MOD 2). Request to amend the description of condition of approval 1.5 so that a single open cycle gas turbine may be used for the power plant: It is considered inadequate information has been provided with the current application to determine the impact of the proposed single unit and the ability of the proposed single unit to be able to satisfy the existing conditions of the consent which are proposed to remain unchanged. In this regard, Council is concerned that the Modification 2 Environmental Assessment document states that the existing condition 1.6 has now been satisfied and requires no further assessment as part of this modification. Council’s understanding is that the applicant has recently received confirmation from your Department that condition 1.6 may be satisfied subject to a number of additional conditions. As these additional conditions remain outstanding and subject to further approvals, Council is of the opinion that the proposed modification must be expanded to also amend condition 1.6 to include these additional conditions. Therefore, it is recommended that condition 1.6 be amended to read: 1.6 Nothing in this approval permits the construction and operation of an open cycle gas turbine plant, unless the Proponent has submitted a report to the Secretary which demonstrates that operation of an open cycle gas turbine plant will not have an adverse impact on aviation safety. In this regard a) Prior to construction, the applicant must provide a report to the satisfaction of the Planning Secretary, confirming that the final design of the OCGT would meet a CPV of no more than 6.1 metres/second at or below 700 feet AMSL; b) Prior to operation of the plant, the applicant must provide a report to the satisfaction of the Planning Secretary confirming that all the mitigation measures and the inclusion of a plume symbol on aeronautical charts have been or would be implemented (noting that some measures can only be implemented after operations have commenced), as listed in Section 10 of the final aviation impact assessment report dated 13 February 2020. The current application is seeking the permissibility to construct a single open cycle turbine in place of the two or three originally proposed in 2010. The modification assessment reports compare the impacts of a single turbine and stack compared to the two or three originally proposed as if the proposed single plant is the same specifications as the previously nominated two or three. Council does not consider this to be appropriate as the single plant now proposed is substantially different in order to be able to satisfy the additional conditions discussed above. - 3 - Department of Planning, Industry and Environment Shellharbour City Council Submission – Tallawarra B (MP07_0124-Mod-2) _______________________________________________________________________________ In this regard, the current application assessment report states: The modified Project would require a single exhaust stack. The single stack would be up to 50m high and would incorporate a plume dispersion device. The plume dispersion device satisfies the requirements of condition of approval 1.6. The plume dispersion device will be an integral part of the exhaust stack and its design would include a number of outlets, angled away from the vertical and each other. Preliminary design indicates that the plume dispersion device would widen from about 7m in diameter at its base to about 20m at the exit for the range of gas turbines being considered for the Project. Following a review of all of the documentation accompanying the application it appears that there are no details or specifications of the proposed plume dispersion device, the stack or the proposed single open cycle gas turbine development in its entirety. Council is of the opinion that these details are required to enable an adequate assessment of the proposal and its ability to satisfy all existing conditions relating to Visual Impact, Air Quality, and Noise Impact. For these reasons, Council recommends that the determination of the application be deferred and the applicant be requested to submit details and specifications, including a photomontage of the actual proposed single open cycle gas turbine plant including the proposed stack and plume dispersion device. Council recently met with representatives of Energy Australia to discuss the proposed modification application in order to gain a better understanding of the proposed development. That meeting reinforced a desire from both Council and Energy Australia to collaborate and ensure the best possible outcomes for the ongoing provision of power in NSW, Shellharbour Airport operators and customers as well as the Shellharbour community generally. During that meeting, Energy Australia indicated that it was likely to be in a position to provide the final detailed design and specifications of the proposed development to the DPIE for consideration and assessment in August and that these documents are likely to form part of their response to submissions. During the discussions, it was also agreed that a final report including the required plume impact mitigation measures may also be submitted at that time. This report would outline those mitigation measures specified within the Final Aviation Impact Assessment dated 13 February 2020 as well as a proposed implementation plan for the proposed measures, including, education, adding to electronic flight bags and charts, warning messaging etc. Another consideration discussed at the meeting was the experimental nature of the proposed plume dispersion device and the importance of ensuring that it adequately achieves its intended function. The current consent contains condition 7.4, which requires the submission of an Operation Management Plan to ensure that the plant maintains compliance with the environmental perimeters of the approval. Council considers it appropriate that condition 7.4 also be amended to include the additional conditions recommended for inclusion into condition 1.6. This will ensure that the proposed development will be required to physically demonstrate compliance with the aeronautical safety requirements and plume limitations. Council would like to work with your Department and Energy Australia during the consideration and assessment of this application to ensure that the best possible outcomes are achieved. - 4 - Department of Planning, Industry and Environment Shellharbour City Council Submission – Tallawarra B (MP07_0124-Mod-2) _______________________________________________________________________________ In light of the matters of concern raised in this submission, Council is unable to support the application in its current form. Should you require further information or clarification
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