100 Miles On A Mission
Bryce Courtney’s Power of One is having something of a running revival in the You Yangs this Saturday.
Raised on a farm at Bunding, near Ballan, Kelly Conroy will run 100 miles around the You Yangs to reflect the length of AusNet’s proposed 190km Western Victorian Transmission Line project.
Member for Western Victoria, Bev McArthur, will be there to support the incredible protest that Ms Conroy is prepared to make to highlight the opposition to the plan.
“Ms Conroy is 100 miles on a mission to highlight the devastation this high-wired, poorly considered project will have on people and livelihoods along the length of the project,” Mrs McArthur said.
“This project is not only massive – but Kelly is proving that it is also very, very personal.
“Some of Victoria’s best farmland and natural habitat is at its mercy. “It will change farms, tourism, homes, livelihoods, ways of life. And that’s without even mentioning the visual blight it will cause right through the region.”
“The opposition to the overhead transmission lines is not opposition to renewables - its opposition to their ill thought through connection to the grid.”
“Much expert evidence, including a major report recently commissioned by the Moorabool Shire clearly demonstrates the economic, financial, environmental, agricultural, safety, health and well-being benefits of the underground option.” [see linked report below].
When Ms Conroy announced her planned run, she said it was her way of contributing to the community effort to stop the project proceeding in its proposed form.
She said “AusNet will impact wildlife, the natural landscape and people’s homes. This is what I value”.
Her 160-kilometre run is just 30 kms short of the full length of the Sydenham to Stawell) transmission line. It will be conducted in 20km loops, representing the link between towns along the proposed route.
“If this were Extinction Rebellion or some other in-your-face group, they would be gluing themselves to the roads and disrupting lives.
“Instead, here we have a young woman, tenacious and brave, doing everything she can in a healthy way to bring people together to fight a common cause.
“Her effort highlights the will of locals to stick together – and argue the case for underground powerlines – not a metal highway towering above the land.
“Kelly’s 100 miles speaks volumes for the power of individuals to fight – in their own way – for what they believe in.
”The 200 people joining Kelly on Saturday should also be celebrated. I look forward to being there to witness something powerful.”
15 July 2021