His wife Christy added that they were “not wealthy people”, and with a “monster mortgage”, they would be unable to move if prices dropped.

Gresham, an ACT firefighter for more than 20 years, is also concerned about the fire risk both in Wallaroo and on the outskirts of Canberra since the area is prone to bushfires and battery storage systems can be volatile.

“To have something within hundreds of metres of residential properties and the toxins that will be created if something goes wrong, that will be carried through smoke to these residents is a major concern,” he said.

At the Murrumbateman Community Hall about 20 minutes from Wallaroo, the public meeting stretched over four hours, with a break for lunch. Twenty-five residents spoke against the project, raising issues about the impact on views, tourism, traffic and road safety, and fire risk.

Only the development manager for the project, Ben Cranston, spoke in favour. He said the project would deliver $1.6 million for community projects over 30 years, employ 150-200 people during construction, and four to five during the operational phase.

“If the project is approved, we will remove approximately 215,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases from the atmosphere [annually],” he said.

Cranston said the project had been amended in the past week to reduce the footprint, as well as previous concessions to add landscaping, reduce glare, and control traffic.

Community member Ben Faulks told the Herald the landowners would make money, but the rest of the community would pay the price in lost amenity and lower property values.

“This is a transfer of wealth from the residents of Wallaroo to one or two landowners,” Faulks said.

Faulks said he supported renewables, but argued the project location was driven by the proponents rather than a planning decision about where a solar farm should be sited.

Real estate agent Mark Johnstone, a resident of 23 years, told the meeting he expected a 20 per cent drop in property values from the loss of scenic beauty.

“I support renewables but not reckless renewables,” Johnstone said. “This is not the right location.”

Community member Andrew Cunich told the meeting he bought his property in 2020, paying a premium for the view, and building an outdoor lifestyle around it.

“Imagine if you bought yourself a brand new telly and somebody came up with a black texta and just went right across the centre of it and said ‘enjoy your TV’,” Cunich said.

The area is popular with cyclists and contains several vineyards, with signage on the Hume Highway, Federal Highway and Barton Highway promoting the wineries.

Prominent winemaker Nick O’Leary told the Herald he feared tourism would be diminished.

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“If I went out to a winery from Canberra or Sydney, the last thing I’d want to see is a big solar factory on the way out to enjoy a nice lunch at a local winery,” O’Leary said.

Marilyn Gendek said thousands of homes in Canberra were also affected, but the NSW-ACT border meant “the city of Canberra is treated as invisible”.

Ramila Chanisheff from the Australian Uyghur Tangritagh Women’s Association called on the proponents to avoid buying panels built with slave labour.