Build over a Sewer
The rules for building over and near existing council-owned buried infrastructure (including sewer mains, stormwater pipes and underground electrical cables) vary from region to region.
There are two main reasons for these rules:
- The owners of the infrastructure want to be able to access their pipes and cables safely;
- The owners of the public infrastructure don’t want your structure to collapse into their trenches.
Keep this in mind when constructing over or near sewer mains, stormwater pipes, and electrical cables. You’re more than likely going to need a structural engineer to assist with the design of the foundations for any structures built close to or above the sewer or stormwater pipes.
Resources
The rules for building over or near sewers changed in November 2014. Under the new approval process, building work over or near a sewer must be assessed against the Queensland Development Code Mandatory Part 1.4 (MP 1.4).
The Department of Housing and Public Works has information on MP1.4. This is the manual we refer to when preparing a build-over sewer application in Queensland.
MP1.4 Training Session for Enigneers
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One reply on “Why are there rules for Building over sewers”
Hi there,
I came across your youtube video regarding building near sewer pipe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDBw514SaLs&ab_channel=CornellEngineers.
The video is excellent and helpful. I am planning to build a granny flat at the back of my yard and there is a sewer crossing. MP1.4 says the building need to stay 3m away from the pipe, which I understand. However if we want to be less than 3m, but still out of the zone of influence (300mm lower than the pipe), is it still ok? Do I need any extra application? In my case the sewer is 800mm deep, so I’m thinking about leaving a 1.2m gap, which should meet the code I suppose?
Thank you for your time and keep up the great work!
Cheers,
Ben