2016-07-12 - Item 14 - Att 1 - Effluent Disposal Planning Study

4.2        Review of Queensland Legislation
On 15 June 2014 the Queensland Government released a discussion paper and held information
sessions in regard to a review of the Plumbing and Drainage Act. The consultation period ended
on 25 July 2014.

The review focused on:

           streamlining requirements to reduce the regulatory burden on industry, without
            compromising public health and safety, and
           reducing red tape, time delays and associated costs for housing providers, plumbing
            licensees, local governments and homeowners.

The government has considered feedback from the review and is currently finalising its response
with a new Act anticipated before the end of 2016.


4.3        Review of Queensland Legislation – Discussion Paper, June 2014
The Discussion Paper ‘Review of the Plumbing and Drainage Act 2002’ contained suggestions by
the Queensland government for improvements to the regulation of plumbing and drainage work.
On-site sewage treatment plants and Chief Executive approvals were specifically addressed.
Section 4.1 is informative to current circumstances of on-site treatment. It contains clear
statements of concern over gaps and shortcomings in the operation and management of installed
systems, particularly secondary treatment. The following extracts from the discussion paper are
important to this Planning Study.

       With increasing awareness about the impacts and consequences of poorly performing
       systems there is a growing concern from local governments about how to manage these
       systems. The current standards are also coming under scrutiny as to whether they can
       ensure adequate treatment performance.

       Local governments are currently obliged to maintain service information (recordkeeping
       only) for on-site sewage facilities and greywater facilities. They have advised that these
       notifications are simply stored and don’t offer any value.

       Also, many maintenance providers do not supply the required service certificates which
       leaves local governments in the position of following up a document they place limited
       value on. These issues result in significant cost and administrative burden on local
       governments.

       It has also been identified that there are gaps in the legislation covering the recording,
       inspection, auditing and monitoring of the systems. As the current regime is not mandated,
       local governments are reluctant to charge a fee for service and they have competing
       demands and limited financial resources. The resource burden for inspecting these
       systems can be considerable as they are often placed in geographically diverse locations.
       This often results in local governments not having the trained resources to monitor these
       activities and they generally only inspect properties following a complaint.

       On-site sewage facilities that are appropriately designed, sited and maintained can provide
       satisfactory waste management solutions. However, anecdotal reports suggest that many
       systems are underperforming (between 60 and 80%) and, as a result, pose an increased
       risk to public and environmental health.

In response to the several concerns set out above the Discussion Paper proposes four potential
improvements to the regulatory framework:-


On-Site Effluent Disposal in Noosa Shire 2016                                                Page 13