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Victoria Case Study

Introduction

Our society depends on electricity for so many things, including light, heating/air conditioning, cooking, computers, household appliances, manufacturing and rail transport. Without electricity, we would live very differently with a much lower standard of living.

In Victoria, more than half of our electricity needs are supplied by burning the 'fossil fuel' brown coal, mined by Loy Yang Power in the Latrobe Valley. We all assume that if we turn on a light switch or press a power button then electricity will flow. However, for this to happen, Loy Yang Power must mine and burn brown coal continuously.

Brown coal is a non-renewable resource. However, it is estimated that so far only 10% of the easily accessible coal lying buried in the Latrobe Valley has been mined, so there is still another several hundred years' worth of coal reserves there.

In fact, Loy Yang Power has the largest open cut coal mine in the southern hemisphere, mining more than 30 million tonnes of coal each year. (To better understand the scale of this, an average-sized trailer attached to your family car would hold about one tonne of coal).

Melbourne buildings at night.

The Environment

Although coal mining provides electricity reliably, efficiently and relatively cheaply, like all human activities mining and burning coal has impacts on the environment - in the five areas of air, water, land, energy and waste. At Loy Yang Power these impacts occur mainly from:

1. Production of exhaust gases (mainly carbon dioxide) and ash.
2. Use of large amounts of water, and release of some waste water into a local creek.
3. Creation of a large open pit mine, and creation of piles of overburden soil and other general waste.

View across the mine to the power station.

Most people agree that all companies, including Loy Yang Power, should make as little impact as possible on the environment. Luckily, companies these days also realise that helping the environment often goes hand in hand with bigger profits - for example, by running machinery that uses minimal energy, by recycling water or chemicals, or by reducing waste.

Loy Yang Power's environmental aim is:

"To be a community leader in protecting the environment by responsibly managing and minimising the environmental effects of Loy Yang Power's activities and striving to improve the quality of the works' environment and [water and air] discharges."

Through an Environmental Management System (EMS) and an Environmental Improvement Plan (EIP) which are reviewed and updated each year, Loy Yang Power measures its environmental performance. Discharges to air and water are continually measured, so that there can be a quick response to any problems.

Loy Yang Power has signed up with the Minerals Council of Australia's Industry Code for Environmental Management; the Electricity Supply Association of Australia's Code of Environmental Practice; and the Federal Government's Greenhouse Challenge. It also has an accredited licence from the Environment Protection Authority (EPA).

Environmental scientists

Some of the important things Loy Yang Power does are:

• All staff, not just the managers, are trained about environmental issues and encouraged to be responsible for the environment. They must go about their jobs in a way that ensures the environment is protected.
• The company spends a significant amount of money each year on environmental care.
• To get feedback and advice on environmental issues, the company has meetings with the local community, interviews with radio stations and journalists, Environmental Open Days, and regular public tours of the mine and power station.
• In consultation with community members and official regulators, environmental risks are ranked from high risk to low risk. This enables the company to decide which environmental issues need the most urgent attention and what level of action to take.
• Once a goal is reached, a new goal is set - this is called 'continuous improvement'. Audits are carried out to check progress towards meeting these goals.

History of Loy Yang Power

Construction of the Loy Yang Power facility began in 1977, and the first 'overburden' (waste soil that needs to be removed in order to reach the coal underneath) was removed in 1982. The first brown coal was mined in 1984.

Until 1997 Victoria's electricity supply was owned and operated by a State Government organisation called the State Electricity Commission of Victoria, or SECV as it was known. However, the industry was gradually 'privatised' in the mid-1990's - that is, sold to several privately-owned companies which took over electricity production.

The mine and power station are now owned by three groups:
CMS Generation (USA) - own 49.4%
NRG Energy Inc. (USA) - own 25.6%
Horizon Energy Investment (Australia) - own 25.0%.

Loy Yang Power is the biggest producing coal mine in Australia and is one of Australia's top 25 companies. It has over 500 employees. More than 65% work on shifts to cover the 24-hour operation of the mine and power station. Many of the employees live locally in Traralgon or within a half-hour drive of the mine.

If you wish to find out more about the company, you can visit its website here. To find out more about the mine and power station, and the way the environment is managed click on one of the themes in the left-hand menu.