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                    Stormwater

                    Our stormwater drainage infrastructure is designed to protect private property and public infrastructure from flooding and provide clean stormwater discharge into our waterways.

                    ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​City of Melbourne manages and maintains the municipal stormwater drainage infrastructure in partnership with Melbourne Water.

                    On this page:


                    Stormwater drains

                    Stormwater drains can be owned by property owners, Melbourne Water, City of Melbourne, Department of Transport (VicRoads) and various infrastructure managers. The owner of each drain is responsible for its ongoing management and maintenance.

                    City of Melbourne is responsible for the management and maintenance of our stormwater drains. These include the channels (gutters), drains and pits located in public roads, and our drains in drainage easements.

                    Damage to your stormwater drain

                    You as the property owner are responsible for maintaining all stormwater connections between your internal drainage system on private property and our drainage network. This includes the point of connection located within a street, laneway, public land or an easement.

                    Management of stormwater on your property

                    You are responsible for managing the stormwater accumulating within your property. Stormwater must be collected within your property and discharged to our drainage network in accordance with the nominated legal point of discharge advice obtained from City of Melbourne.

                    Issues with flooding or overland flow of water between private properties must be resolved between property owners. Resolution may require drainage works to be carried out on both properties. We are not responsible for managing drainage issues or disputes between private properties.

                    Legal point of discharge

                    A legal point of discharge report specifies where stormwater from a property must be discharged to our drainage network. This point is usually our stormwater drain, pit or street kerb and channel.

                    You need to obtain a legal point of discharge report from us in accordance with Regulation 133(2) of the Building Regulations 2018 if you’re applying to do building work that includes a stormwater drainage system.

                    How to apply 

                    You must apply online for a legal point of discharge report.

                    To start an application, you'll need to log in with your registered customer account. Find out more about how to register and log in.

                    Supporting documents

                    If your drainage plans relate to multiple properties, you will need to submit:

                    • a site plan clearly showing the property boundaries requiring legal point of discharge.

                    To support your application, you can choose to submit:

                    • a covering letter
                    • additional documents such as drawings.

                    Fees

                    There is a report fee of $155.30 payable by credit card when you submit your application.


                    After you apply

                    We will determine the appropriate legal point of discharge in each case.

                    We will contact you if we require further information.

                    We will notify you of the report outcome within 10 business days.

                    If you are doing any work on public land such as footpath, nature strip, kerb and channels and laneways, you must request and apply for consent for works.

                    Engineering design drawings – drainage

                    Please submit these drawings as part of the consent for works application process.

                    Where the works require significant drainage works in the public realm or will not commence within the next 12 months you can request our pre-approval.

                    Additional fees may apply for reviewing engineering design drawings and supervising construction works. You will be informed of any relevant costs prior to the review commencing.​

                    How to apply

                    Submit the following documentation:

                    • Calculation report that demonstrates the property stormwater discharge and how it meets permissible site discharge and onsite detention if required.
                    • Civil and drainage design plans showing drainage infrastructure that are consistent with the report.
                    • Copy of planning permit.

                    Inspection of drainage works

                    You will need to arrange a site inspection of the drainage works as required by legal point of discharge or consent for works approval. Please contact us at least three business days before the commencement of works on site.

                    Property owners, their representatives and contractors are responsible for ensuring all works are undertaken in accordance with our permits and approved engineering design drawings.

                    If a design change is required you must submit the revised drawings for our review and approval.

                    Stormwater treatment

                    We are committed to improving the quality of water being discharged into the drainage network that ends up in our waterways. We work with developers and property owners to incorporate stormwater treatment measures into new developments. These measures help protect and improve the condition of our waterways and irrigate urban vegetation.

                    Water sensitive urban design principles minimise the impact of new developments on the surrounding environment and improve stormwater quality. These principles are specified in our Stormwater Management (water sensitive urban design) Policy, part of the Melbourne Planning Scheme.

                    Stormwater treatment measures can take various forms in the urban environment, including:

                    • collection and reuse of rainwater and stormwater on site
                    • vegetated swales and buffer strips
                    • rain gardens
                    • installation of water recycling systems
                    • multiple uses of water within a single manufacturing site
                    • direction of flow from impervious ground surfaces to landscaped areas.

                    The inclusion of stormwater treatment into a building design reduces potable water consumption and mitigates flood impacts on our drainage network.

                    Water sensitive urban design

                    As part of the requirements for a town planning permit you might need to obtain approval for any proposed stormwater treatment measures. If you are making changes to your property that may impact the quality or amount of stormwater being discharged, you will need to submit a water sensitive urban design (WSUD) report to City of Melbourne.

                    You need to specify how best-practice targets can be achieved in a water sensitive urban design report, and submit the required documentation for approval. You can use the free online STORM calculator to generate a report for extensions, single dwellings, units and townhouses. To comply with our standards, City of Melbourne requires a 100 per cent or greater STORM rating.

                    When it comes to larger developments you may need to seek professional services. Stormwater professionals have access to sophisticated stormwater quality modelling tools such as Model for Urban Stormwater Improvement Conceptualisation (MUSIC) software.

                    How to apply

                    Please submit the following documentation:

                    • Report demonstrating how best-practice stormwater quality performance objectives are achieved.
                    • Civil and drainage design plans showing stormwater quality infrastructure that is consistent with the report.
                    • Copy of planning permit.

                    Fees

                    There are no application fees for our assessment of your water sensitive urban design.

                    After you apply

                    We will review your application and contact you if we require further information.

                    We will notify you of the assessment outcome within 10 business days.

                    Code of Practice for Building, Construction and Works

                    The Code of Practice for Building, Construction and Works in the City of Melbourne sets out all safety and amenity requirements when using or impacting public space for any kind of building, construction or general works.

                    These requirements are intended to protect the public and our property around sites where works are occurring.

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                    For more information, contact:

                    Contact name
                    Infrastructure Development
                    Telephone number
                    03 9658 965803 9658 9658
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