Latrobe Valley water
Communities make coal company pay
In December 2024, hundreds of Victorians spoke up about AGL’s plan to take water from the Latrobe River to rehabilitate the Loy Yang coal mine.
Today, we’re celebrating your win.
We supported the community to speak up through two rounds of public consultation on AGL’s application to access water from the Latrobe River system to rehabilitate its Loy Yang coal mine in Gippsland. Together, we called for transparency, accountability, and for coal companies to finally pay the price for decades of environmental damage.
And it worked.
The Minister for Water has now made a decision to approve the application – but with strong conditions that reflect recommendations from the community and EJA, including:
- AGL must pay $230 per megalitre of water per year (in 2025 dollars, indexed to CPI). This is a great start – and the community wants to see big polluters paying more for access to precious natural resources, like water.
- Community benefit funding, with all water access revenue paid into a fund for the benefit of the Latrobe Valley and Gippsland. This includes opportunities to improve waterway health, strengthen the long-term resilience of the river system, support water security and efficiency projects, and advance self-determined outcomes for Gunaikurnai Traditional Owners.
These conditions are a direct response to widespread calls for transparency and accountability – recommendations EJA set out in our submission guide and echoed by many people across the community.
This outcome didn’t happen by accident. It’s the result of years of tireless community advocacy, and the significant weight of feedback shared through the consultation process.
This is a major step forward for people-powered environmental justice. And it’s your win.
The next step is to make sure the money goes where it's needed.
Community advocates have made it clear they want this money directed to protect the health of the Latrobe River – especially in times of drought.
This is a win worth celebrating – and a foundation to keep building on.
“This is an important step forward. The decision sends a clear signal that polluters are expected to pay their way – not be handed free access to public resources.”
Ally McAlpine, Senior Lawyer at Environmental Justice Australia.
Why this matters
This decision matters because proposals to use such vast amounts of public water must be fully scrutinised – by experts and by the communities who are directly affected.
It also sets an important precedent. With similar proposals expected for Yallourn and Hazelwood, this outcome helps establish a stronger baseline for accountability in future mine rehabilitation decisions.
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Make a difference
The challenges we face are vast. The time to push for large-scale system change is now.
