‘Not on my watch’: how windfarms became a key issue in NSW local elections

From Port Stephens to Illawarra, council candidates are running against renewable schemes because of lack of consultation'

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Part of what's driving Mark Watson's pitch for mayor is his opposition to a project he says is the talk of the town and the biggest issue" in his coastal home's history.

The former One Nation candidate for the state government is now running as an independent for mayor of Port Stephens. The coastal town just north of Newcastle overlooks the middle of the 1,800-square kilometre offshore windfarm zone off the Hunter, where the Albanese government plans a renewable energy hub to be operating by 2030.