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Melbourne Water is closed for non-emergency business activities from Saturday, 21 December 2024 to Sunday, 5 January 2025 inclusive. Any applications related to asset management and protection will be reviewed upon our return on Monday 6 January.

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​You need our formal approval before you can work on any new or modified stormwater connection.

With the continuing development of new housing in green field areas and also in-fill housing in brown field areas, developers need to design drainage systems to manage the quantity and quality of stormwater entering receiving waters. ​

We must approve any new or modified stormwater connection into our drains, waterways or open drainage channels. Connections must meet our technical requirements, which differ depending on whether you are building a stormwater inlet (underground drains) or stormwater outlet to an open waterway or drain.

Stormwater inlets

Stormwater inlets are connections from a development to one of our underground drains.

Connections or works to our assets shall be carried out by our preferred contractors, who must hold a Permit to Work.

Documents required:

  • a legal point of discharge advice from council
  • preliminary plans with the following information:
  1. A notation shall be placed adjacent to the proposed connection on the detailed drawing/plan and state the following: “Prior to the commencement of works on Melbourne Water’s asset, the contractor must apply for inspection via the link below for approval/permits to work on live asset(s). Penalties apply for unauthorised works.”
    Inspection of work information and application.
  2. The inlet connection(s) must be angled 45° or as close as achievable downstream to Melbourne Water’s drain and be set in the middle third of the drain.
    Refer to standard drawing No. 7251/08/425
Stormwater outlets

Stormwater outlets are connections from a development to one of our open waterways or drains.Outlet connections must be designed and constructed to our specifications, as indicated in our creek enhancement work guidelines (though these may vary by site).

We will provide further details about the connection method once we have assessed your application.

Contractors needing to carry out work on underground drains must have a Permit to Work. To get a permit, they will need to complete a permit recipient training course.

Documents required:

  • a legal point of discharge advice from council
  • preliminary plans.

Application process

Step 1

For any new or modified stormwater connection, developers need to contact their local council, who will nominate the legal point of stormwater discharge.

Step 2

If the local council nominates one of our drains or watercourses as the legal point of discharge:

  1. developers will need our formal approval before they can work on our drainage system
  2. developers will also need to apply to us for upgrades to existing connections to our stormwater system.

Note: connection to our drainage asset is normally through an outlet to a surface channel (either natural or constructed), or an inlet to an underground pipe system.

Connections must meet our technical requirements, however may differ depending on whether a stormwater outlet or inlet is being built.

Important: Works can only be performed by our Eligible Drainage Contractors. All contractors who carry out works on live assets are required to have the required authorities to work.

Prior to the commencement of works on Melbourne Water’s asset, the contractor must contact Melbourne Water’s Asset Services Team on 131 722 for approval to work on a live asset(s). Inspections will be undertaken at different stages of the works. The letter of approval will confirm requirements. Penalties apply for unauthorised works. Any works undertaken without Melbourne Water approval will be considered illegal under the Water Act 1989.

Step 3

If we approve a stormwater connection, we will send a letter to the developer outlining any specific conditions that must be meet as part of our approval. 

A written acceptance to comply with our conditions and payment of the relevant fees is required.

Approvals from other authorities

We may need evidence of approvals from other authorities or private owners who may be affected by your works.

Check that you comply with other laws that may affect your development, such as Special Building Overlay and Land Subject to Inundation Overlay.

Check connection requirements

All work on new or modified stormwater connection into our drains, waterways or open drainage channels must meet our technical requirements.

Documents required

Your application should include:

  • a legal point of discharge advice from council

  • preliminary plans

  • additional approvals from other authorities or private owners who may be affected by your works

  • any other documents that are relevant to your proposal

Approvals

If we approve your stormwater connection, we will send you a letter outlining any specific conditions you must meet as part of our approval.

You must respond with a written acceptance to comply with our conditions and pay the relevant fees.

Prior to the commencement of works on Melbourne Water’s asset, the contractor must contact Melbourne Water’s Asset Services Team on 131 722 for approval/permits on a live asset(s). Penalties apply for unauthorised works.

All contractors who carry out works on live assets are required to have a Permit to work.  For underground drains and concrete can only be performed by our Preferred Contractors.

Inspections may be required at different stages of the works, a letter of approval will confirm this requirement.

Please refer to inspection of work.

Duration

We are currently receiving a high volume of applications due to growth in demand for our services, which has unfortunately created significant delays. We acknowledge your patience and will make every effort to process your applications as soon as we can. View our current processing times.

Fees (non-refundable)

Fees differ depending on the type of stormwater connection you require. We will advise you of the amount once we assess your application. 

Please note this application fee is non-refundable.

Fees and security for construction, works and connections.

Guidelines or standards

There are two types of connections – stormwater inlet (underground drains) and stormwater outlet to an open waterway or drain. All work must meet our technical requirements:

Stormwater connection guidelines

Important information

Your application may experience a delay if there are any issues. Delays in the application process may happen if:

  • The information and documentation are incomplete or missing.
  • We need to further investigate the complexity of the development.

We assess applications on a case-by-case basis and will notify you of the following outcomes once we have completed the review.

  1. The application approved. Project can move forward. 
  2. The application approved. Conditions need to be met before the project can move forward. 
  3. The application declined. We will notify you of the reasons the project cannot move forward. (reasons given). 
  4. Application needs to be assessed further, and we need more information.

Contact us

If you need any help completing this application, contact us on 131 722.

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