New Onsite Wastewater Laws
Published on 25 August 2022
About 4,000 homeowners in the Mansfield Shire have wastewater systems and some may not comply with recent changes to legislation.
Mayor Cr James Tehan said Council has an awareness program in place to help homeowners and to inspect private systems.
“We are here to help the community and this starts with us providing information and assistance but obviously, we don’t have the resources to inspect 4,000 systems in a short timeframe,” he said.
“There are many homes in the Shire that may have been built before the 1970s where a septic might treat toilet waste but wastewater from the bathroom, laundry and kitchen may be discharged either to the rear of the house block or into a drain.
“Laws governing treatment of wastewater have changed a lot since then, including from the 1980s onwards, where all wastewater had to be contained and aerated wastewater treatment systems were a new option for homes not connected to reticulated wastewater systems. These came with increased maintenance and reporting requirements.
“For people who have any of these systems, the new Environment Protection Authority (EPA) legislation is now an enforceable obligation. The change means some of the older systems, especially dated septics, or those that haven’t been maintained, may need to be upgraded to meet the new requirements to contain all wastewater on their property.”
Council has been working on a program of site inspections to help homeowners whose systems fail to comply with the new laws. Council also recently sent all homeowners whose properties are outside sewer districts a flyer about the change with their rates notice.
Council has set a target of inspecting 200 systems every year and is currently advertising for an additional staff member to help meet that goal.
Council last week adopted the Onsite Wastewater Management Plan which incorporates changes to respond to the new Environment Protection Act 2019. The Plan also outlines the standards and requirements for new homes and developments being built in the Shire.
To help spread the word about the Plan, Council will now engage with land capability assessment consultants, real estate agents, developers, building contractors, and plumbers to ensure they understand the requirements for new developments reliant upon on-site wastewater treatment and are informed to be in a position to respond to owners seeking a review or advice regarding their existing system.
In development of the Plan, Council sought input from the statutory water authorities Goulburn Murray Water (GMW) and Goulburn Valley Water (GVW) and their feedback, together with input from EPA and DELWP has been incorporated into the final document and its action plan.
Further information is available on the Council website or by contacting Officers at Council or EPA.