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Contact Details

Committee Members
Kevin McAsh (Chair)
Steve Jones
Robert Herbert
Lyn Desoto
Richard Barrie
Glenn Browne
Tony Troup
Caroline Henry 

NSW Farmers'
Association Staff
E nswfarmers@
nswfarmers.org.au

P 02 8251 1700
F 02 8251 1750

Member Service
Centre
1300 794 000

Audit of Septic Management Programs of Coastal Councils

The Committee has long been seeking an audit process for the Septic Management Programs of all coastal Councils with oyster producing estuaries in their boundaries. Human effluent contamination is one of the primary risks to oyster production worldwide and it is critical that every measure is taken to minimise the risk of such contamination events.

As has been clearly shown in the Whitehead Report into the Kalang River norovirus contamination event, some Councils still have some improvements to do before achieving compliance with legislative requirements for septic management programs.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries has put forward an On-Site Sewer Management Systems proposal to educate local governments on appropriate standards for sewage disposal. The Committee is supportive of the program and recognises it is one method of improving the septic management systems in local government regions.

The Committee is supportive of an audit process as a means of highlighting the lessons learnt from the Wallis, Tilligerry, Bellinger, Tweed River, Georges River and Kalang incidents, to prevent another pollution event and to determine where extra resources may be required.