Hundreds attend consultation sessions on wind farm zone proposed off SA's Limestone Coast

Residents along South Australia's Limestone Coast say the federal government is not hearing their concerns about a proposed offshore wind farm zone in the Southern Ocean.

Energy Minister Chris Bowen opened public consultation on the zone last month which could pave the way for offshore wind farms to be established in an area between Warrnambool and Port Macdonnell.

Public consultation sessions have been held in towns along the proposed zone over the past week.

Thursday's session at Mount Gambier was held as an informal "drop-in" session where representatives from the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water discussed the proposed zone with small groups.

This format was changed in Port Macdonnell later in the afternoon to a question-and-answer session when more than 300 people attended.

Mount Gambier resident Mark Muller said the session should have involved department representatives speaking to the community as a whole.

"People weren't able to have their say as a community group and everything is reliant in putting in a submission," he said.

"A lot of people in this community aren't that computer literate, so that's difficult.

"More community consultation is important and to be able to have a big community discussion is important."

In response to concerns over the consultation format, a department spokesperson said the government was "committed" to genuine consultation.

"The Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, will consider concerns raised in community submissions before deciding to declare an area as suitable for offshore wind," the spokesperson said.

"Drop-in sessions allow members of the community to attend at any point within a session and have their questions answered on a one-on-one basis."

The coast off Port Macdonnell is the site of a proposed 77-turbine wind farm first pitched in 2022 by BlueFloat Energy.

The town is home to South Australia's rock lobster fishing industry, which has led the community backlash against offshore wind in the region.

SA Rock Lobster Advisory Council executive officer Nathan Kimber said the industry wanted to see the zone stop at the Victorian-SA border.

"There's no net energy benefit for South Australia," he said.

"There'll be very few if any jobs, and the size of infrastructure required to build these turbines and install them in the water means that those jobs can only be housed out of Portland.

"There is just nothing in it for the Port Macdonnell, Mount Gambier and Limestone Coast communities."

Mount Schank resident Lisa Van Uitert said she had never seen a community issue bring so many people from the region to one place.

"I must admit I was really quite surprised," she said.

"I've come down and it's standing room only and the car park is chockers.

"It's really fantastic because it really means the whole community is really passionate about what's happening and really want to have their say."

Public consultation on the Southern Ocean wind farm zone ends on August 31.