2016-02-02 Planning & Organisation Committee Agenda

PLANNING & ORGANISATION COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA                          2 FEBRUARY 2016


The purpose of GPTs is to intercept gross pollutants such as soil, silt, rubbish and leaves
before these contaminants make their way to the Shire’s receiving waters. A lack of
maintenance results in the trapped material flushing into the stormwater system.

These infrastructures may require an upgrade and/or an ongoing and regular maintenance
regime if they are to be effective.

The current annual program cost for scheduled GPT cleaning throughout the Shire is
$25,000. It is estimated that 80 tonnes of sediment is removed annually through this
process.

The current capital renewal program for stormwater assets is $550,000. These assets
consist of piped assets which include culverts, and structures which include pits, manholes,
field inlets / outlets, headwalls, Gross Pollutant Traps (GPTs) and other Water Sensitive
Design (WSUD) devices. The renewal program is based on condition assessments of these
stormwater assets and prioritises renewal activities as a result of asset failure and defect
detection.

In existing urban developments, there may be an opportunity to include in the capital
renewal program, upgrades to stormwater infrastructure (e.g. GPTs) based on risk to
receiving water quality, in addition to condition assessments.

It may also be possible to include stormwater infrastructure upgrades in the future
amendments of the Local Government Infrastructure Plan.

If achievable, these upgrades will potentially improve the ‘quality’ of stormwater runoff from
existing residential, commercial and industrial areas to receiving waters.

This approach may be supported by the State Government as ‘innovative and locally
appropriate solutions to urban stormwater management’ which mitigates urban diffuse
emissions to ensure EVs and WQOs are protected and enhanced (refer statutory activities in
Section 2).

Non-statutory responsibilities

With regard to rural activities within the Shire, the level of adoption of Best Management
Practices (BMP) by landholders to improve rural land management is largely unknown.

There are several not-for-profit incorporated community groups who provide extension
services to rural landholders which promote sustainable land management and
conservation. This service is often achieved through property visits, field days and
workshops which cover a range of farm management and production issues such as grazing
land management, soil health and fertilizer and chemical use (see table below for more
details).

These groups also support Council’s conservation programs, notably Land for Wildlife and
Voluntary Conservation Agreements which have a predominately rural focus.




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