Outrage as Giant Wind Turbine Transport Threatens Historic Anzac Memorial Trees

Plans to transport massive turbines for a proposed wind farm near the Blue Mountains have sparked community outrage, after an impact study revealed transport trucks will strike the branches of century-old trees dedicated to World War I soldiers.

The study, commissioned by Paling Yards Wind Farm developer Global Power Generation (GPG), found that oversized trucks carrying wind turbines will make physical contact with trees along the O'Connell Anzac Memorial Avenue. Located south of Oberon on the New South Wales Central Tablelands, the avenue features 120 desert ash trees planted between 1925 and 1927 to honor 66 local men and women who served in the First World War.

Study Predicts Impact on Memorial Trees

According to the report, transport vehicles will make contact of between 50 centimetres and 1.25 metres with 12 of the memorial trees. While the GPG-commissioned study concluded that the impact would be "limited to leaves and minor branches" with "no impact on tree trunks and major branches", local residents are deeply concerned about the long-term consequences.

Kathy Manton from the Community Guardians of the O'Connell Anzac Memorial Avenue warned that the project would cause irreversible damage. "They're 100-year-old trees … they won't grow back from wherever they're damaged or cut," she said. "The limbs are so brittle so if they're cut to allow the passing of oversized trucks through then that canopy is lost forever."

Local resident Chris Muldoon, a member of the Oberon Against Wind Towers group, described the findings of the study as "damning".

"This is a memorial that celebrated its centenary this year, it is a significant local memorial for people who served in the Great War," Mr Muldoon said. "It is not just the environmental impact of the trees, it is the fact they're desecrating an Anzac memorial."

Mitigation Measures Branded 'Unacceptable'

The transport route assessment used remote sensing analysis to build a virtual simulation of the trucks navigating the tree-lined avenue. To prevent severe damage to the heritage-listed avenue—which was added to the Oberon Local Heritage list in April, 2026—the study recommended that trucks drive "slowly" past the trees and be "visually monitored" at key points to make sure branches are not "caught or dragged" by the vehicles.

Mr Muldoon strongly rejected these measures. "Is that what we're going to rely on? That is just unacceptable," he said. "These trees are sensitive… They were planted 100-years-ago, grown as seedlings from the Middle East." He added, "This is not just a run of the mill row of plain trees; these are special trees."

Broad Environmental Risks and Major Route Changes

The Paling Yards Wind Farm proposal seeks approval for 47 turbines, each standing 240 metres tall, which are projected to generate enough electricity for approximately 100,000 homes. However, the project's broader environmental footprint has drawn scrutiny, leading to a referral to the National Environmental Protection Agency due to potential impacts on four endangered species, including koalas and gang-gang cockatoos.

Additional biodiversity studies indicate the development poses a "very high risk" to the endangered gang-gang cockatoo, as well as the vulnerable dusky woodswallow and wedge-tailed eagle, due to habitat loss and turbine collisions. According to the developer's Bird and Bat Adaptive Management Plan, turbine strikes are expected to kill more than 164 bats and eight birds annually over the project's 30-year lifespan.

In response to community feedback and pushback from regional councils, GPG has revised its transport logistics. The turbines will no longer travel from the Port of Newcastle through Mudgee and Bathurst. Instead, they will undertake a 645-kilometre detour passing through Dunedoo, Wellington, Orange, and Bathurst before reaching Oberon.

The detour bypasses the Lithgow City and Mid-Western Regional council areas. The Mid-Western Regional Council had formally objected to the NSW Planning Department, warning that the projected traffic volume through its district was "unsustainable" and offered no benefits to local ratepayers. As part of the modified route, GPG will finance a new 510-metre road connection between Percy Street and the Mitchell Highway in Wellington.

These route modifications were developed in consultation with Transport for NSW, local government bodies, and the NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure.

GPG has been contacted for comment. The National Environmental Protection Agency is currently accepting submissions before rendering its referral determination. Since the NSW Department of Planning has already received more than 280 objections from local community members, the Independent Planning Commission will make the final decision on whether the wind farm project goes ahead.