Darley Power Fight is a group of around 1000 residents in Darley, Coimadai and Merrimu. We are united against high voltage transmission towers passing through our backyard. We came together through the realisation the transmission line will divide a narrow corridor between Darley and the Lerderderg State Park; altering landscape character, causing widespread damage to critical habitat for threatened species, increasing fire risk to the Park and thousands of residents, destroy our visual amenity, harm local agriculture and will impact land values. It will completely desecrate, in a few years, what nature has taken millions of years to create. The group was formed to represent this specific region and we are currently working on an awareness campaign to get more community members on-board. I certainly expect numbers to increase dramatically to more accurately reflect the number of residents impacted.
We are working together and with the Moorabool and Central Highlands Power Alliance (MCHPA) to increase pressure on AusNet and government to ensure alternate viable solutions are considered. The MCHPA represents the Moorabool Shire and Central Highlands inside and bounding the “area of interest” corridor. The membership base for the larger group is in excess of 2,000 although I dont have exact numbers. Darley Power Fight is a sub-group of the MCHPA, fighting our own fight.