Stormwater Levy

How can Council raise this Charge?

The Stormwater Service Charge was introduced by Council after a period of public exhibition (April - June 2007) when Council adopted the 2007/10 Annual Management Plan and Budget on the 19th of June 2007. The Levy has been applied on rates since 1 July 2007. The purpose of the Levy is to establish a sustainable funding source aimed solely at improved stormwater management. The NSW Government amended the Local Government Act in October 2005 to allow councils the option of levying a stormwater management service charge. Amendments to the Local Government (General) Regulation 2005, which came into force in April 2006, provide the requirements for this charge.

What is the Charge for?

Stormwater management is about managing the quantity and quality of stormwater runoff from a catchment with the aims of:

• minimising impacts on aquatic ecosystems;
• minimising flooding; and
• using stormwater as a resource.

Urbanisation has resulted in a significant increase in impervious surfaces, which increases the volume of stormwater flowing into urban waterways. Stormwater flowing from these hard surfaces contributes substantial loads of litter, sediment and chemicals to urban waterways, as well as causing flooding in some areas. In addition, water is now recognised as a valuable resource and opportunities to harvest and use this water are being investigated.

Marrickville Council has developed a reputation as being a leader in this field through experience in sustainability planning, stormwater education, strategic infrastructure management and sustainable urban water management planning.

What is the charge and how much is it raising?

The stormwater charge has been set at $25 per residential lot, $12.50 per strata lot and $25 per 350m2 of commercial / industrial lots (In the first year, councils are permitted to levy a flat charge for business to enable the collection of area data to enable future charges to be determined according to area). This will raise approximately $700,000 is per annum. In 2007/08, $689,000 has been raised.

This is a conservative estimate; it is considered that possibly up to 50% of the business/industrial properties may have an area in excess of 350 sq metres, which could return a further $50k giving a total of approximately $700k. The rate for business/ industrial properties is based on the higher average impervious area and resultant higher runoff relating to such land uses.

Are there any concessions?

The mandatory concession that applies to ordinary rates, domestic waster, water and sewage charges does not apply to the stormwater charge. However the exemptions that apply to other rates and charges do apply i.e. Department of Housing properties and non-rateable land are exempt.

The mandatory pension concessions that apply to ordinary rates, domestic waste, water and sewage charges do not apply to the stormwater charge. However the statutory exemptions from rating that apply to ordinary rates and charges do apply i.e. registered charities, Department of Housing properties and non-rateable land etc are exempt from the Stormwater Management Charge. In addition, Council has resolved to provide a 50% subsidy for pensioner Card/Health Care card Holders for the principal place of residence.

What is being done with the funds raised?

Council already provides stormwater services to manage the stormwater flowing from private property. These services include drainage, drainage advice, community education and monitoring. The charge will enable council to improve these existing services and extend them to stormwater planning, stormwater harvesting and water sensitive urban design systems.

The charge will enable Council to fund a range of programs necessary to achieve more sustainable urban water management i.e. managing water within the subcatchment as far as possible, meet our environmental protection requirements, provide alternate water supplies, and protect property against flood damage.

Program Areas

• The Stormwater Harvesting  Program involves storage and treatment of stormwater and then reuse for park irrigation providing a sustainable non-potable water supply.
   
• Marrickville Council is also trialling its Rainwater Tank Incentive Scheme offering rebates and promoting rainwater harvesting through media and workshops.
   
• Subcatchment planning considers the physical, social, land use, administrative and cultural characteristics for managing water at a local level. Marrickville Council intends to develop subcatchment management plans for all 21 subcatchments in its local government area.
   
• Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) is about the sustainable management of water within urban areas through intelligent and integrated design. It looks at the urban water cycle as a whole, taking into account all three urban water sources: potable water, wastewater, and stormwater;
   
• Education and community engagement where Council undertakes planning and implementation of projects with the community and industry, inspects commercial and industrial premises for stormwater pollution prevention, and works with businesses to commit to water reduction targets to reduce stormwater run-off.
   
• Asset improvement and maintenance includes planning, construction and maintenance of stormwater infrastructure (stormwater drains, pits, gross pollutant traps).
   
• Flood Management concerns flood mitigation works, and technical surveys to improve the knowledge of how water flows through the Marrickville local government area.
   
• Ecological Monitoring involves the implementation of an ongoing ecological monitoring program of the waterways in the Marrickville LGA. The program will look at the ecological health of the Cooks River and other waterways e.g. water quality entering Parramatta River from Council subcatchments, and the effectiveness of WSUD initiatives in removing pollutants. It will follow on from work commenced through the RiverScience Project, a joint project of the Cooks River Foreshores Working Group coordinated by Marrickville Council.

Projects for 2007/08 - Major projects this year

Subcatchment Planning
Subcatchment Planning is being carried out in Tennyson Street Subcatchment in Dulwich Hill and Riverside Crescent Subcatchment in Marrickville. People in these communities will work with Council to find ways to manage water sustainably in their local neighbourhoods, each with its unique land use, demographic and environmental issues. Council will firstly survey these subcatchments to find out local people’s knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding water, the way water moves through the subcatchments, and how it is being managed.  The communities will then create a vision and action plan for water in their local areas.

Residents of the Illawarra Road Subcatchment in Marrickville South are already working with Council and have developed a vision, goals and action plan for water to the year 2050.

For more information about the programs, please contact Council’s Sustainable Water Environments Coordinator, or phone 9335 2104

Rainwater Tank Incentive Scheme
Council has supported a Rainwater Tank Incentive Scheme for Marrickville that includes:

• a $60,000 rebate program for rainwater tanks, plus technical workshops, education and evaluation as a 12 month pilot in the Illawarra Road Subcatchment in Marrickville South
• a comprehensive promotion and education program as a 12 month trial across the local government area on the installation of rainwater tanks providing technical advice and education and promoting the Sydney Water rebates
• a review of the pilot scheme nine months after its commencement with a report to Council
• possibly a Marrickville-wide roll-out of the scheme after consideration and inclusion of review recommendations

This project encourages sustainable water management practices as part of the Urban Stormwater Integrated Management (USWIM) group of programs.  The scheme has been developed to assist in achieving better water management practices within the private domain because works on public land alone will not address the real problems faced by dense urban areas such as Marrickville.

Rainwater tanks not only reduce the demand for potable water brought in from outside the catchment but assist in reducing the impact of stormwater in fragile and stressed waterways such as the Cooks River. Collecting rainwater from the roof means less water flows on hard surfaces in the subcatchment because the roof becomes ‘cut off’ from the stormwater system except in heavy rain or long periods of rain.

The incentive scheme complements Sydney Water’s rebate system and, if successful in its first year, will be available to all residents and businesses within the area. The project will trial methods of facilitating a rainwater tank program for businesses and residents.

Council holds regular technical workshops on rainwater harvesting and greywater reuse, advertised through the online Events Calendar. To book call Marrickville Council on 9335 2222.