Black hole': Pollution from coal-fired power worse than overseas, survey finds

Australia's biggest coal-fired power stations are permitted to dump toxic pollutants on nearby populations far in excess of overseas counterparts, even those in China, a survey by Environmental Justice Australia found.

A survey of 10 of Australia's biggest coal-fired
 power stations finds them lagging internationally
 on most areas of pollution controls.

The study of 10 of the largest plants in NSW, Queensland and Victoria shows limits of key pollutants – such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particulates – typically far exceed those in US, European Union and China.

The Toxic and Terminal report said that 900,000 people live "dangerously close" to power stations, with their pollution well-documented as causing increased levels of asthma, respiratory illnesses and heart disease.

Prevailing winds meant people living further away were also exposed, with some 87 per cent of Sydney's sulfur dioxide pollution derived from five coal-fired power stations in the Hunter.

Read Peter Hannam’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “‘Black hole': Pollution from coal-fired power worse than overseas, survey finds.”