Plumbing and Drainage

Applications and Inspections - (Plumbing and Drainage Act 2018)

Goondiwindi Regional Council is committed to maintaining high standards of Customer Service.  A full set of standards have been developed and are available from any of Council's offices or please view the following document:

Plumbing & Drainage Service Standards

This section provides general plumbing and drainage information to assist property owners and key stakeholders when planning plumbing and drainage work.

Unless plumbing and drainage work is prescribed as unregulated notifiable work or minor work under the Standard Plumbing and Drainage Regulation 2019, it is classed as Regulated Work and requires plumbing and drainage approval through Council.  A licensed plumber/drainer can only undertake plumbing work.

Lodging a Plumbing Application

Application forms for all types of development are available from the Department of Housing and Public Works

Mandatory requirements for all applications

• Form 1 Permit work
• Form 7 Notification of responsible persons (Plumber/Drainer)
• Plumbing and Drainage Application Checklist
• Plumbing and Drainage Application Checklist - Relocatable Building 
• Water Meter Connection form to be submitted along with application if there is no Council meter on site.
• Floor Plan
• Site Plan
• Proposed Drainage Plan - (Template Proposed Drainage Plan )
• Onsite Sewerage Design (for non-sewered areas)
• Hydraulic Design for all commercial work or where required
• Payment of prescribed fee

Plumbing and Drainage Inspections

The responsible person (or someone who is directly employed by them) is the only person/s under current legislation who can call for an inspection .  Contact must be made by the responsible person to arrange bookings for all stages of works.

Types of inspections

• Under slab (sub-drain)
• Stack/elevated pipe work that is to be covered
• Drainage (sanitary house drain)
• Water services (rough in)
• Onsite Sewerage
• Final plumbing inspection
  • Fact Sheet - as constructed plans
  • Sample - as contructed plan
  • Template - as constructed plan

Under the plumbing and drainage legislation, at least 48 hours notice must be given prior to the inspection date.  Inspections can be booked by phoning Council's Plumbing and Drainage Department direct on (07) 4671 7432.

Prior to requesting a final inspection the Responsible Person is required to ensure that all required documentation is submitted to Council.

To receive a compliance certificate at completion of plumbing and drainage works, the final inspection must be completed and approved by the licensed professional.  The final inspection must be requested within 7 days of the work being completed.

Notifiable Work

Notifiable work must be performed by a plumber/drainage licensed by the plumbing Industry Council, but will not require permits or mandatory inspection by Council.

Notifiable work (Form 4) includes most plumbing and drainage work performed in existing homes including:

• Kitchen and bathroom additions and renovations
• Installing or replacing hot water heaters including electric, solar or heat pump hot water heaters
• Installing fixture such as toilets, showers and sinks in an existing home
• Extending or altering pipe work.
• Please note that notifiable work does not relate to properties that are not connected to Councils sewerage system.

Fact Sheet Form 4 for Homeowners

Fact Sheet Form 4 for plumbers and drainers

Water Meter Connections

A Water Meter Connection form  needs to be completed and all relevant fees paid prior to any construction works commencing on site.

Water Meter Connections fact sheet

On-site Sewerage

In unsewered areas Council requires householders to install individual or household sewage treatment systems to treat domestic wastewater from toilets, kitchens, bathrooms and laundries.  Poorly sited or maintained on-site sewerage facilities can impact public health and the environment.  The owner of the facility is responsible for ensuring the system is maintained and functioning properly.  It is emphasised that maintenance is essential for the satisfactory performance of these facilities.

If installing a new system or upgrading from septic to waste water treatment system, legislation requires you to submit to Council an onsite sewerage system design by an accredited designer along with a plumbing and drainage application. If replacing an existing septic trench then this trench can be replaced with a trench as per existing.

Septic Systems – Classified as a primary treatment plant and must be disposed of underground in absorption or transportation trench.  Septic tanks are typically pumped out and cleaned every 5 years.

Waste Water Treatment Plant – Classified as a secondary and advanced secondary treatment plant, which can be disposed of either above ground or below ground and must be serviced on a quarterly basis (or as per manufacturers requirements).  A licensed service agent must be engaged by the property owner to carry out the maintenance and to advise Council of the performance of your system on the prescribed form.

Fact Sheet for Onsite Sewerage Systems
Local Onsite Sewerage System Designer List
Fact Sheet Septic Tank Decommissioning

Existing Drainage Plans

You can request a copy of an existing drainage plan, if on record, for a property by contacting Council on (07) 4671 7400.