The oldest and dirtiest power station in Australia, Hazelwood, closed in March 2017 after a community campaign lasting more than a decade. It was an historic milestone in global efforts to address climate change and cut pollution.
For many years, Environment Victoria has joined unions and community groups calling on state and federal governments to provide funding for the Latrobe Valley to transition to new sustainable industries. This vision is detailed in our report Life After Coal.
Despite the lack of a national plan for closing coal power stations and the short notice, there have been some positive efforts to support the local community and workers.
The Victorian government demonstrated its commitment to the region with $270 million in funding for economic diversification, and the federal government contributed a much smaller amount of $40 million.
The Victorian government also helped broker a deal where workers from Hazelwood could be redeployed to another brown coal power station in the Latrobe Valley.
Read more in our media release.