Environment Protection Authority Victoria (EPA) monitoring of air quality around schools in the Coolaroo and Dallas on 17 July 2017 has shown readings typical of what would be expected on a cool winter day.
EPA is using mobile equipment to monitor air quality around schools to give the local community confidence in its environment.
The map below shows where EPA’s monitoring vehicle travelled throughout 17 July, 2017. The green lines show good air quality and the red marks are spikes in poor air quality that EPA scientists attribute to traffic in the area and not the fire at a recycling plant in Coolaroo.
EPA continues to provide the results of its air monitoring to the Department of Education and Training as it becomes available.
EPA advises people that if they can smell smoke and are concerned they should try to avoid the smoke by staying inside or avoiding the area if possible.
Good to very good air quality is forecast for Melbourne and the Latrobe Valley on 17 July 2017.
EPA’s stationary monitors near the site of the Coolaroo fire are showing good air quality; data from these stations is available hourly from EPA’s AirWatch website.
Information about the impacts of smoke can be found, here: http://www.epa.vic.gov.au/your-environment/air/effects-of-smoke
For the latest updates on the incident, people are encouraged to visit www.emergency.vic.gov.au
