THE potential health effects of Victoria’s Hazelwood coalmine fire will be monitored for 20 years by a team from Monash University.
THE study will focus on Latrobe Valley communities affected by the February fire. Victorian Health Minister David Davis said on Tuesday it would investigate the long-term impact of emissions on heart and lung conditions, cancers and mental health, as well as on children and the elderly.
The Monash researchers will work with experts from Federation University and the University of Tasmania, and will have the health department’s co-operation. The coalmine fire burned for 45 days and dumped toxic ash and smoke over nearby areas. The Teague inquiry’s report found that communities suffered extensive short-term health problems due to the smoke and ash, while the long-term effects were unknown.