Gracemere substation and powerline route

The demand load on the existing Malchi substation which supplies Gracemere is approaching capacity, and additional network capacity needs to be created to ensure a reliable supply for the township and to provide for future regional growth.

This increasing demand for electricity has resulted from a growing local population, new housing estate developments and additional industrial load requirements from the Gracemere industrial area. Our enhanced lifestyle choices contributing to the use of energy-hungry devices like air conditioners and plasma televisions are also increasing the pressure on the existing electricity distribution network.

This demand led us to identify that construction of a new substation was required to ensure the Gracemere community continues to be provided with a reliable power supply and adequately caters for economic growth and supports future regional development.

Substation

We undertook a thorough assessment of a number of potential locations for the substation site in the Gracemere area.

We investigated available land based on the proximity to the electricity load, site access, network access and minimal social and environmental impacts.

The new substation for Gracemere needs to be located within the township to supply electricity to the growing number of residential estates being developed and planned for, as well as supplying the industrial area on the western approach to the town along the Capricorn Highway.

The selected location will also cater for increased demand from future commercial development within the Gracemere CBD. With the support of the Rockhampton Regional Council, we believe the selected substation site will offer the lowest overall environment, social and economic impact to the Gracemere community.

Powerline location

We investigated a number of powerline route options before the proposed powerline corridor was selected, taking into consideration social, environmental, design and cost factors.

The substation doesn't require planning approval under the current planning scheme.

While approval wasn't required, we chose to take a collaborative approach, working with Rockhampton Regional Council and the community to identify a suitable location for the substation. We've also taken guidance from Local and State planning agencies to ensure the project takes into consideration all potential impacts.

The proposed substation site was purchased as a private sale.

Main considerations in selecting the powerline route included:

• Minimising the potential impact on homes and businesses, recreation areas, scenic and tourism areas, conservation and heritage areas, or areas zoned for future development
• Avoiding, where possible, extremely rough or steep terrain including water bodies
• Minimising the impact on small land parcels and cultivated land
• Minimising clearing of native vegetation and its potential habitat values and any impact on endangered and vulnerable ecosystems, or threatened flora and fauna species.

The substation will have a modern appearance and be designed to minimise any impact on the visual amenity of the area. Artist’s impressions (JPG 188.2 kb) will provide the community with an idea of what the substation will look like on site.

All of our substations are fully enclosed by fencing as a security measure to both protect the community and to avoid any damage occurring to electrical infrastructure.

This fencing can be a combination of chain mesh fencing for security purposes, and/or timber fencing to provide screening of the substation from the street and help improve the visual amenity.

The design of the substation fence and material choice will be determined during the design phase and form part of the community consultation process.

Low levels of background noise are associated with normal substation operation. The faint hum is expected to be indistinguishable from surrounding sounds, however this will be considered as part of the design.

As part of the environmental impact assessment for a substation site, a noise assessment is carried out in accordance with the Environmental Protection Act 1994, Environmental Protection Policy (Noise), and where necessary, noise mitigation measures are put in place. A noise assessment for the Gracemere substation has been completed and noise control measures have been incorporated into the design.