Tell the Victoria EPA to make Yallourn power station clean up its act

Tell the Victoria EPA to make Yallourn power station clean up its act

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The figures are out and once again it's clear that coal-fired power is bad for our health. 

According to the National Pollutant Inventory, EnergyAustralia reported that Yallourn power station increased dangerous PM2.5 pollution an extraordinary 82 percent on the previous reporting year, despite producing less electricity. 

Communities in the Latrobe Valley are being exposed to toxic fine particle pollution that can cause serious illnesses like asthma, lung cancer and heart disease.  

The people in charge of protecting our health from pollution – the EPA – must hold operators accountable. 

Together with Doctors for the Environment, Lung Foundation Australia, Asthma Australia ...

The figures are out and once again it's clear that coal-fired power is bad for our health. 

According to the National Pollutant Inventory, EnergyAustralia reported that Yallourn power station increased dangerous PM2.5 pollution an extraordinary 82 percent on the previous reporting year, despite producing less electricity. 

Communities in the Latrobe Valley are being exposed to toxic fine particle pollution that can cause serious illnesses like asthma, lung cancer and heart disease.  

The people in charge of protecting our health from pollution – the EPA – must hold operators accountable. 

Together with Doctors for the Environment, Lung Foundation Australia, Asthma Australia, Healthy Futures, Voices of the Valley, Environment Victoria, Australian Conservation Foundation and Friends of the Earth, we’ve lodged a legal complaint with the Victorian EPA calling for an investigation into the shocking increases in toxic fine particle PM2.5 pollution from Yallourn power station. 

Join the call and demand the EPA makes Yallourn power station clean up its act. 

The amount of toxic air pollution pumped out by Australia’s fleet of ageing coal-fired generators would be illegal in most other countries. 

This toxic industry has not moved to control and reduce air pollution, despite technologies being readily available and the EPA hasn’t made them.  

When 4800 Australians die every year from air pollution and coal-fired power stations are responsible for an annual health bill of $2.6 billion, we must speak out. 

Together, let’s make sure coal-fired power stations clean up its act. 

 

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Add your name to the complaint

Read the full legal complaint that we just launched with a coalition of health, environment and community groups and then and add your name to demand the Vic EPA makes Yallourn coal-fired power station clean up its act.

Dear Dr Wilkinson ,

I refer to the legal complaint sent to you on behalf of Environmental Justice Australia, Doctors for the Environment, Lung Foundation Australia, Asthma Australia, Healthy Futures, Voices of the Valley, Environment Victoria, Australian Conservation Foundation and Friends of the Earth asking you to investigate significant increases in particle pollution at Yallourn power station.

I request that my name be added to the complaint because I am seriously concerned that EnergyAustralia may be putting the community at risk from exposure to toxic pollution.

I request that the EPA investigate EnergyAustralia’s operation of the Yallourn Power Station for possible breaches of the Environment Protection Act 1970, the State Environment Protection Policy (Air Quality Management) and or Licence 10961, as outlined in the legal complaint mentioned above.

Recently released data from the National Pollutant Inventory for the period 2018-19 shows the Yallourn Power Station has increased dangerous PM2.5 pollution an extraordinary 82 percent on the previous reporting year, despite not operating at full capacity. This steep and unexplained rise in particulate emissions from Yallourn warrants investigation.

The linkages between particulate pollution and human health are well established. There is no known safe limit of exposure. The list of human health impacts to which air pollution contributes continues to grow and includes heart disease, stroke, asthma attacks, low birth weights of babies, lung cancer and type 2 diabetes. PM2.5 is considered to have the strongest effect on human health.

We note that similar issues have been identified with respect to the Vales Point power station in NSW, and that the NSW EPA has confirmed it will investigate Delta Electricity’s operation of the Vales Point power station.

The EPA has a duty of care to protect us from pollution. I ask that you fulfil that duty with this investigation.

Yours faithfully,

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