Plans for big North-West renewable energy developments have taken a step forward, with documentation about a proposed 115 kilometre transmission development lodged with federal authorities.
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The transmission lines would take energy from UPC Robbins Island's proposed Circular Head wind farms at Robbins Island and Jims Plain to a transmission line proposed by TasNetworks.
They would link at Hampshire, south of Burnie.
The federal Environment Department has opened the documentation for public comment on whether the transmission project is a controlled action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
Public comments would be taken until June 10.
The department would later decide whether approval was required.
The project - aimed at connecting the two proposed "renewable energy parks" to the National Electricity Market - would also need separate approvals from the Circular Head, Waratah-Wynyard and Burnie City councils.
The documents said the proposal included:
- About 600 metres of underground cable from the boundary of the Robbins Island project to a "transition structure" at West Montagu;
- the transition structure to switch the energy from underground lines to overhead lines;
- about 10 kilometres of transmission line from the transition structure to the Jims Plain substation;
- about 105 kilometres of transmission line from Jims Plain to a proposed new substation at Hampshire; and
- associated tracks and infrastructure, such as construction yards.
The transmission line would be supported by steel lattice towers, generally 45-55 metres high and spaced 400-500 metres apart on flat ground.
The documentation said the proposed transmission line generally avoided housing and about 70 per cent of the corridor was on forestry land.
It would be on agricultural land in a few sections, and would potentially affect what the documents described as a small section of the Pruana Regional Reserve.
"The choice of this route has been made after careful consideration of the impacts to this area from this short route against the increase in environmental and visual impacts from longer routes to the north and south of the reserve," it said.
TasNetworks is planning a new transmission line between Hampshire and Staverton, near Sheffield, and upgrading the existing transmission line between Staverton and Sheffield.
