{"id":328944,"date":"2023-02-17T14:03:42","date_gmt":"2023-02-17T04:03:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=328944"},"modified":"2023-02-21T19:15:32","modified_gmt":"2023-02-21T09:15:32","slug":"councillor-ejected-from-solar-farm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2023\/02\/17\/councillor-ejected-from-solar-farm\/","title":{"rendered":"Councillor Ejected From Solar Farm"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cr Kirstie Schumacher at the gate of the solar farm project … turned away from the official opening by a Mytilineos representative<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

February 17, 2023<\/strong><\/p>\n

Mytilineos – the developers of the controversial Kingaroy Solar Farm on Kingaroy-Barkers Creek Road – held an official opening ceremony at the site on Friday.<\/p>\n

But only a select group of people, mainly Mytilineos staff members and contractors, appear to have been invited to the “Kingaroy Solar Farm Inauguration”.<\/p>\n

No local residents were present, the media were told to leave and local councillor Kirstie Schumacher, whose Division adjoins the site, was ejected mid-way through her site induction.<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was despite Cr Schumacher being the only representative from the South Burnett Regional Council present.<\/p>\n

“I am deeply offended that as a representative of the region I wasn’t welcome at the ceremony on the technicality of not providing an RSVP,” Cr Schumacher told the media who were left standing at the gate.<\/p>\n

“We need to build relationships of trust and understanding with renewable energy proponents.<\/p>\n

“I attended the ceremony in good faith and clearly was not welcome.<\/p>\n

“I am disappointed for our community and the surrounding neighbours that our core values of country hospitality are clearly not shared.<\/p>\n

“I really wonder, and can’t help but speculate, what there is to hide and why I would be turned away on such an important day.<\/strong><\/p>\n

“In terms of being a good corporate citizen, I would have expected better.”<\/p>\n

The Kingaroy Solar Farm project has had a chequered relationship with the South Burnett Regional Council, which initially rejected the development application in 2018 and was taken to court by then-proponent Terrain Solar before an agreement was reached in 2019.<\/p>\n

The reporters were ejected by Mytilineos representative Lluvia Murillo (Manager Stakeholder Engagement & Community Liaison at Renewables Oceania Region) who made it very clear they were not welcome despite it being the official start of a multi-million dollar project which the company had promised would benefit the South Burnett region.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The “opening ceremony” followed a sometimes heated meeting between Mytilineos representatives and local residents on Thursday night at the Kingaroy RSL Club.<\/p>\n

southburnett.com.au<\/strong> spotted several residents cruising by the worksite on Friday morning but they made no attempt to enter the site.<\/p>\n

* * *<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Before we were ejected, southburnett.com.au learned a basic timeline of the construction project:<\/strong><\/p>\n