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Melbourne Water

Melbourne's water
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Information for Developers

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Our role in urban development

As the waterway, drainage and floodplain authority for the Port Phillip and Westernport region, we receive applications for urban subdivisions and other developments from local councils. This allows us to comment on applications and, if necessary, place conditions on planning permits to ensure that the drainage system continues to function properly and any new developments are adequately designed to protect people and property from floods and to protect the health of local waterways.

If you want to develop land (and if it is required by the relevant council planning scheme) you will first submit an application to your local council for a planning permit. If the permit is granted, it may include special conditions that must be met.

The types of conditions Melbourne Water may add to a planning permit include:

  • the payment of development charges (or ‘contributions’) to fund the construction of infrastructure
  • the provision of infrastructure to provide a drainage outfall for the development in order to protect the development from flooding, and to minimise the flooding and water quality impact on receiving rivers and creeks
  • the provision of drainage reserves and easements over Melbourne Water assets
  • controlling runoff during construction
  • the protection of areas of environmental significance adjacent to waterways

Did you know?
Developers must now use water sensitive urban design techniques to meet best practice targets for stormwater quality and discharge in new subdivision developments, under the requirements of Clause 56.07 of the Victoria Planning Provisions. Find out how to incorporate water sensitive urban design elements into your development...

We also prepare drainage schemes to identify infrastructure requirements and the charges that will apply to fund new infrastructure. These schemes are referred to as Development and Redevelopment Services Schemes. The preparation of these schemes is guided by the Principles for Provision of Waterway and Drainage Services for Urban Growth (PDF, 180kb) , which were created in consultation with the development community. The aim of these principles is to ensure a consistent approach to drainage works in new and existing developments.

The Achieving Sustainable Urban Development 2008-09 Report (PDF, 963kb) shows how contributions to drainage schemes from developers are used to fund new infrastructure. The report also highlights new approaches to drainage and flood protection, and demonstrates how we are working with the development community to improve water quality, the environment, and community wellbeing.

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