Vales Point power station has been issued with an order to limit its emissions of nitrogen oxide.
In an application to the EPA, Vales Point requested a further five-year license exemption which allows for the emission of more than 800mg per cubic metre of nitrogen oxide (NOx) per day.
The EPA granted Delta an exemption to the licence, however, the exemption went hand in hand with an order to reduce current daily levels.
The new ruling states that the power station must cut NOx levels by 35 per cent to 850 mg per cubic metre for 99 per cent of the time, and 23 per cent to 980 mg per cubic metre for the remaining one per cent, which allows for occasions when burning at higher temperatures occurs.
Delta Electricity applied to continue to operate with 1,500mg per cubic metre for a further five years to January 1, 2027.
Broadly seen as positive move for guaranteed air quality on the Central Coast, emissions from Vales Point remain at odds with those permitted in the Clear Air Regulation Act, which came into effect in 2012.
Eraring power station, also on Lake Macquarie, emits on average 330mg of NOx per cubic metre.
Community and environmental groups engaged in a relentless campaign for Vales Point’s NOx levels to be reduced, based on health impact studies that showed the effect the pollutant can have on adults and children.
In response to the campaigning, the EPA engaged in community
consultation during the decision-making process for the exemption request.
This was Vales Point’s third request for an exemption. On the previous two occasions, the exemption was granted by the EPA without community consultation.
The EPA received 1,800 submissions, while the issue became the subject of several protests.
“This is the first time the public have had an opportunity to express their views to the EPA on this
issue, so that’s significant,” said campaigning group Future Sooner’s Will Belford.
Many of those submissions called for the EPA to go further than it has and requested that Delta Electricity fit low NOx burners at the station, much like those in use at nearby Eraring and in power stations across the world.
It is believed that the fitting of the low NOx burners would have resulted in a halving current emission levels.
Reports suggest that low NOx burners would have cost owners Delta $90m.
It is thought that solutions to reduce emissions at other stations cannot be put in place at Vales Point due to the different burners it houses.
Delta Electricity issued a statement saying, “(It) appreciates the scientific rigor applied by the EPA in the review, which should allay any community concerns regarding local air quality.
“The granting of the licence amendment reinforces the scientific data that the Central Coast has the best air quality in the Greater Metropolitan region, with clear evidence that motor vehicles are by far the highest contributor to NOx readings at ground level in the region.”
One of the leading voices of the campaign to reduce the NOx emissions was Newcastle GP Dr Ben Ewald who raised concerns that the license and the limits imposed on the power station would have little effect on air quality.
“The licence has been trimmed slightly but current pollution releases will continue at almost the same rate,” he said.
“The EPA has squandered this opportunity to improve the health of the surrounding community, especially those children with asthma due to power station pollution,” Ewald said.
“The EPA has locked in another five years of respiratory disease for the Central Coast community,” said acting Nature Conservation Council chief executive Jacqui Mumford.
Environmental Justice noted that the pollution limits from Vales Point are already out of step with global standards.
“Despite this the EPA continues to grant Vales Point an exemption rather than putting the health of all NSW residents
first,” Environmental Justice Australia Lawyer Charley Brumby-Rendell said.
Delta Electricity discloses NOx emissions in publicly available documents on its website each month.
The average emission level of NOx in November was 668mg per cubic metre, hitting a high that month of 781mg.
In November 2020, the average level was 520mg, hitting a high of 918mg.
Vales Point will also be required to install a new ambient air quality monitoring station at Wyee Point for NOx, sulfur oxides (SOx) and PM2.5 by July 1, 2022.
New regulations for all power stations will be reviewed by the EPA in 2022.
Vales Point is scheduled for closure in 2029.
Reports suggest that the closure could be brought forward in line with the rise in renewable energy.
Nicola Riches
All they need to do is shut the plant down for a couple of weeks every so often to lower their total nitrogen oxide pollution so it will at least equal Eraring Power Station over the year