New commissioner needs to be 'someone the farm sector can trust'

When he commenced in his role in 2015, initially as a national wind farm commissioner, renewable energy engagement more closely resembled frontier scenes from the wild west.

There was almost a lawlessness to negotiations with farmers regularly against energy outfits more akin to cowboys, gangs and gamblers.

Those farmers in the renewables trenches today might not believe it, but there's been a huge shift in discourse over the past decade.

There are a lot of landholder protections still lacking in contracts and negotiation processes, but there is also a lot more understanding and awareness of what good and bad behaviour looks like.

Mr Dyer has helped shine a light on some of the completely rogue-like conduct of some of the cowboy companies trying to access farmland for major renewable projects.

Findings from his review of community engagement in the renewable sector last year revealed 90 per cent of landholders were dissatisfied with the level of engagement and information provided during land access negotiations and highlighted many of the power imbalances at play, especially for compulsory transmission projects mooted across the eastern seaboard.

The first job for the new commissioner to take his place will be to hold the Albanese government to its promise to implement all findings from the community engagement review and stand firm on the need for a mandatory code of conduct for energy companies.

The need for better access to information for landholders during negotiations cannot be overstated - full and complete disclosure of issues and impacts to landholders ahead of any land access negotiation can't just be best practice, it needs to be the law.

An urgent state and federal government agreement is needed around the behaviour of energy companies when they engage with landholders, and criminal penalties need to be brought in for those companies who still think it's OK to bully or deceive landholders.

Mr Dyer acted as a first and last point of contact, bringing more information to light over missing protections and proper engagement through his commissioner's website.

He seemed to be well across much of the poor behaviour of some of the energy proponents. His successor also needs to be a good listener and someone the farm sector can trust.

They need to be armed with greater powers to drive change, particularly in relation to implementing and administering a mandatory, enforceable, code of conduct.