The upcoming Port Stephens local government election is shaping up as the latest battleground for offshore wind in the Hunter.
Anti-offshore wind advocates are planning to run candidates in the shire's three wards as a precursor to a possible challenge for the federal seat of Paterson.
Mayoral candidate Mark Watson said the independents would campaign on behalf of multiple local groups opposed to offshore wind.
"We have policies on plenty of other issues in the community as well but we are taking the (no offshore wind) fight up on behalf of all of the groups," Mr Watson, who will also run as an east ward candidate, said.
"There's a lot of people out there who don't support it (offshore wind); we need to take up the fight on their behalf."
Mr Watson, who previously contested the seat of Port Stephens in the 2023 State Election for One Nation and received 12.9 percent of the vote, said the independent team would also advocate on a broad range of community issues in addition to energy.
"We are going to focus on the three Rs rates, roads and rubbish; that's what councils should be about," Mr Watson said.
"The roads around Port Stephens are hectic. If you drive along Port Stephens Drive you need to take a boat with you. Look at Marsh Road, they had to drop the speed limit to 40km/h because there is no money to fix the road until 2029."
The independents will also advocate on behalf of small businesses potentially impacted by the offshore wind project.
Mr Watson cited Newcastle and Port Stephens Game Fishing Club heat maps showing 13,105 marlin have been tagged and released in Port Stephens waters over the past 20 years.
"Game Fishing brings a large portion of tourism and whale watching and other marine life. There's a lot at stake here that's why our main policy is standing up against the Hunter Offshore Wind project," Mr Waston, who has worked in the hospitality industry for many years, said.
The independents will be up against a Labor Party team led by east ward councillor and deputy mayor Leah Anderson.
Former Port Stephens mayor and long-standing councillor Bruce MacKenzie has also indicated that he is considering running for mayor.
The federal government formally declared the Hunter Offshore Wind Project in mid-2023.
The area, which is smaller and further out to sea than what was first proposed, starts 20km from the coast at Port Stephens and extends to Swansea in the south.
The Hunter's floating offshore wind farm zone attracted eight licence applications.
The government is expected to announce two or three successful applicants within the next couple of months.
