Apply for a stormwater connection (legal point of discharge) or repair
You may need a permit to connect your property’s stormwater drainage to Council’s drainage system or to repair an existing connection.
What is a Legal Point of Discharge (LPOD)?
A Legal Point of Discharge (LPOD) is the approved location where stormwater from your property must connect to the Council’s drainage system.
This may be a Council pit, kerb, or pipe in the street, nature strip or an easement.
An LPOD certificate confirms the approved discharge point for your property. It helps ensure your stormwater drainage meets Council’s requirements and helps prevent flooding or stormwater from affecting neighbouring properties.
Builders and plumbers can also use this information to plan and install the correct drainage system.
What clearance do I need?
Your proposed stormwater connection must be at least 1 metre away from structures and other assets, including:
- Traffic and street signs
- Pram crossing and vehicle crossings (driveway crossovers)
- Sewer and stormwater pits
- Parking bays
- Fire hydrants
- Service pits, including Telstra pits
- Light and power poles.
Water connections and stormwater drainage connections must also be at least 2.5 metres away from street trees.
If you cannot meet the required distance from a tree, you will need an arborist report and approval from Council. Please contact the Landscape Assessment and Surveillance team on 03 9217 2170 to discuss your situation.
How deep must the connection be?
Unless Council approves otherwise, services must be installed at least:
- 800 mm below the road surface on a fully constructed street
- 300 mm below footpath and nature strip
- at the depth set by Council’s Urban Design and Transport team if the street is not fully constructed.
Before you apply
Before starting work, you must:
- Get a Before you Dig report to check for underground pipes, cables and other services
- Locate and confirm the position of underground services
- Plan how you will keep the public safe during the work
- Arrange traffic or pedestrian management if required
- Make sure any Council assets affected by the work are properly restored.
You are responsible for managing public safety and repairing any Council assets affected by the work.
Apply for a permit
To apply, you will need to submit a scaled sketch plan showing the proposed works and any existing features, structures and services above or below the ground.
For information about permit fees, visit the Works in Road Reserve Permit page.
Book a pre-backfill inspection
Once you have a permit, Council must inspect stormwater connections to Council pits and pipes to check that the work meets Council’s standards.
Important: Leave the connection exposed and accessible until Council’s authorised officer has inspected it. If the connection has been backfilled before inspection, it will need to be exposed at your expense, and the inspection may need to be rebooked, and you may incur a re-inspection fee.
You must book a pre-backfill inspection at least 48 hours before covering the connection. Call our Asset Protection team on 03 9217 2170 to book your inspection.