Building Sites

Requirements for building sites

Council's Community Living Local Law Number 1 2018 outlines a number of requirements for building sites. The Local Laws aims to:

• prevent the movement of mud, clay, building materials and sediment from the site
• ensure that stockpiles are located and constructed
• provide a bin with a lid for litter and waste to be stored so that it cannot be washed or blown off site
• contain clean-up and wash-down effluents on site
• ensure toilet facilities are provided and appropriately cleaned and maintained.

Council's authorised officers investigate alleged breaches of the Local Law and may issue Notices to Comply to rectify an offence, issue infringement notices, and commence legal action as required to ensure compliance.

Rubbish and litter

Council's Community Rangers are authorised under the Environment Protection Act 1970 as litter enforcement officers.

Litter offences include dumped rubbish; litter deposited on roads; litter that is on any land or water and is likely to become detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of members of the public; litter that is unduly offensive to the sense of human beings or a hazard to the environment.

Litter includes any solid or liquid domestic or commercial waste, refuse, debris or rubbish and, without limiting the generality of the above, includes any waste glass, metal, plastic, paper, fabric, wood, food, soil, sand, concrete or rocks, abandoned vehicles, abandoned vehicle parts and garden remnants and clippings.

Litter enforcement officers investigate, issue notices and commence legal action, including:

• directing a person to remove litter
• directing a person to provide information required as part of a litter investigation
• directing a person or company to:
• not deposit litter
• to ensure that no litter escapes from any premises
• to do or not do, specified things to ensure that the person does not breach the legislation.

In some circumstances, depending on the severity of the offence, Council will refer a situation onto the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) for investigation.

Litter and builder's refuse must be stored in an appropriate refuse bin. It is an offence under the Environment Protection Act 1970 and Council's Local Law to allow litter or refuse to become windblown refuse, leave the property, contaminate the soil or contaminate the stormwater system.

Builder's refuse or litter must not be placed on any other land or be deposited in or over any part of the stormwater system.

To prevent litter from becoming windblown, leaving the property or contaminating the area, under Clause 5.4 and 5.5 of Council's Local Law, a refuse container must be provided on site prior to commencing any building work.

The refuse bin must:

• contain all builder's refuse on the building site
• be suitable to prevent any windblown refuse
• be placed on the building site and not on Council land or a public place
• be placed in an area which is not in or over any part of the stormwater system
• be kept on site for the duration of the building work (except when being emptied)
• ensure all builder's refuse which requires containment is placed in a refuse container
• be emptied whenever full with the contents disposed of at an approved disposal site, and provide a replacement bin during the emptying process if necessary
• be removed from the site and disposed of appropriately within 7 days of completion of the building work. 

Toilet / sanitary facilities

To ensure suitable sanitary facilities are provided on site, and to prevent sewage or effluent from contaminating the site or from being discharged into the storm water system, under Clause 5.3 of Council's Local Law Number 1, the site must be provided with a sewered toilet or a portable toilet prior to commencing any building work. No sewage or effluent or other waste is permitted to be disposed of onto the building site.

Any portable toilet must:

• be kept on site and not on Council land
• be maintained and regularly cleaned
• be kept on site for the duration of the building work (except when being emptied)
• be removed from the site and disposed of appropriately at the completion of the building work
• have all effluent and waste from the toilet disposed of at a site fully accredited and approved for such waste.

Stockpile storage

Under the Environment Protection Act 1970, litter includes any solid or liquid domestic or commercial waste, refuse, debris or rubbish and, without limiting the generality of the above, includes any waste glass, metal, plastic, wood, soil, sand, concrete or rocks.

Storage of items such as soil, sand, concrete, and rocks must be:

• stored on the building site and not on Council land
• be located on site in an area which ensures that no litter can leave the property or leak into the stormwater system.

Sediment / mud / washings leaving the site

Under the Environment Protection Act 1970, it is an offence to allow litter to leave the property. Litter includes any solid or liquid waste, refuse, debris, rubbish, chemicals, glass, metal, plastic, wood, soil (including mud), washings or waste water, sand, sediment, concrete or rocks.

It is an offence for litter to:

• leave the property
• remain on any Council land
• contaminate the property
• be deposited onto roads, footpaths or stormwater systems
• be deposited on roads from vehicles tyres. 

If litter including mud is deposited onto roads, footpaths, stormwater systems, it must be cleaned up immediately to prevent the litter from entering into the stormwater or to prevent an accident.

Under Clause 5.1 of Council's Local Law, the building sites must be managed to prevent stormwater pollution through the contamination of run-off chemicals, sediments, animal waste or gross pollutants.

Measures must be adopted to:

• prevent any mud, dirt, sand, soil or stones being washed into the stormwater system
• prevent building clean-up, wash-down or other wastes being discharged offsite or allowed to enter the stormwater system.

Any wash down or waste water must be contained on site and disposed of appropriately in accordance with the Environment Protection Act 1970.

Contacts

For more information on building site requirements regarding litter, please contact Council or the Environment Protection Authority.