As Australia gets deeper into the transition away from fossil fuels, renewable energy companies are having to go to greater lengths to win over sometimes sceptical communities. That's been on full display this week in South Australia, where one of the world's biggest green power players has just handed over a huge parcel of land for a new national park.
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00:00 An oasis in an unforgiving landscape, World's End Gorge, about two hours north of Adelaide,
00:07 is one of the few permanent watering holes in northern South Australia, the driest state
00:12 on the driest continent on earth.
00:14 I've been privileged to come here a few times already. It's really unique.
00:18 It's also set to be part of a new national park, earmarked for protection as part of
00:23 a massive new renewable energy development under construction nearby.
00:27 It's a very hidden gem. There's a sign out in the road that says 'Burra Gorge' but that
00:32 wouldn't give you any indication of how unique this place is.
00:34 It's not until you get in here and walk along this watercourse and have a look at the red
00:38 gums and the permanent water and the gorges on either side of it that you really get a
00:42 feeling for how special the place is.
00:44 Known as the Goita Hub, the combined wind, solar and battery development will be one
00:48 of the biggest of its kind in the world when it's eventually completed.
00:52 The land has been handed over as part of efforts by the developers to offset the environmental
00:57 effects.
00:58 We're not aware of any similar arrangement that's been made before. This is the first
01:01 time certainly that Neowen has tried it and in part that's been allowed by the fact that
01:05 we've found this incredible place which you don't come across very often.
01:09 For all the talk about the need to decarbonise the economy, the renewable energy industry
01:13 is facing difficulty in winning over some regional communities.
01:17 Neowen is hoping that gifting this land back to the community can help provide a template
01:22 for others to follow.
01:24 I think increasingly people expect to see nature getting better not worse. Renewable
01:29 energy companies like any other company if they have a development they are going to
01:33 have an impact on the environment.
01:35 The speed at which Australia is moving if we look at the past is quite amazing. Of course
01:40 when you look in front of us we see the challenges because moving from 40, 45 per cent renewables
01:46 towards 80 per cent is another step.
01:49 Following a winding path to a greener grid.
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