Solar Power Study for Jeebropilly

A small locality, primarily a mining area, Jeebropilly is an area located in Southeast Queensland. It is situated about 26 miles from Brisbane beyond the town of Ipswich. Solar power Study for Jeebropilly tries to highlight the possibility for solar power in the area.

Jeebropilly is an extension of the city of Ipswich. The Ipswich Rosewood road, which is an important connector between the city of Ipswich and the Rosewood locality, runs right through the middle of Jeebropilly.

• Area – Jeebropilly has a similar topography to the areas in the southeastern Queensland region. One exception however is the presence of natural gullies created by the flow of seasonal water due to rainfall. This area is strewn with small hillsides gashed out into gullies by seasonal thunder storms pouring out water through them. This provides the area with mineral extraction from the soil as it already rich in these elements.

   

• Industry – The name Jeebropilly is an aborigine word. It roughly translates to a gully where the flying squirrel resides. Because the area is rich in mineral resources, mining had been a primary industry here for a very long time. The only mine existing here, the Jeebropilly coal mine was closed in 2007. This mine was operated by the new hope corporation limited. However this mine has been reopened since as there was an increase in demand for export of coal.

• Connectivity – A railroad track for freight trains to carry raw coal is also present which joins the Rosewood railway line in between Rosewood station and Thagoona, parallel to the Rosewood Thagoona road and Mills street. Jeebropilly’s boundary ends on the Coopers road which lies to the southwest. Although very sparsely populated this area is well connected, both from Brisbane and Ipswich. The stone quarry road servicing the mine also runs right through the center of Jeebropilly providing additional connectivity.

• Solar Potential – This area is probably not on the radar for residential development. Jeebropilly has good weather throughout the year although it does have its share of thunderstorms and rain. If solar power is studied for Jeebropilly, then it would be for commercial use. There is already a lot of common infrastructure put there for coal extraction which might come in handy if solar power for Jeebropilly is considered.

Jeebropilly has a lot of open spaces which can allow for a large commercial solar facility to be installed there. This will help serve the city of Ipswich and other nearby localities, taking the burden of the conventional grid and help generating more power overtime for surrounding areas that may be developed into commercial and residential hubs.

Even for the use of mineral mining abundant in the area, solar power could be a boon. Smaller residential complexes could be set up for the personnel required in mineral extraction. All of their power needs could be provided locally by the Solar power in Jeebropilly.

The current mine in Jeebropilly is an open pit coal mine, which is a proof of the abundance of other important minerals in the area as well. Hopefully with solar power in Jeebropilly the coal will no longer be required and the same infrstructure can be used for mining other minerals.