Eurobodalla Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy

Eurobodalla Integrated Water Cycle Management Strategy
During periods of drought and low rainfall the individual property owners purchase water
externally, which in most instances is sourced from the shire’s regional water scheme.
The village residents’ sewerage needs are serviced by their own on-site wastewater
management systems. Council’s GIS records show that there are about 296 on-site
treatment facilities. Of these, 74% are septic tanks with effluent disposal by adsorption
trench and an additional 20% are septic tanks with effluent pump-out. Property owners
arrange for their own septic tank pumpout, which in most instances is treated in one of the
sewage treatment plants in the Shire. The remaining 6% of the systems utilise aerated
processes with on-site effluent irrigation that give higher levels of nutrient removal than
septic systems.
The village has two stormwater catchments. Most of the catchment area is pervious with
underlying sandy soils. Therefore surface runoff is negligible and confined to the roads
within the village. The first catchment drains to Durras Lake and the second catchment to
the sea. There are about 0.97 km of stormwater pipeline and 57 pits along the village roads
that predominantly carry the runoff from the roads.
Figure 9-2 Aerial Photograph of South Durras
9.2.2 What Are the Issues?
The issues associated with the South Durras landscape and water management system
are classified into environmental and social issues, and are discussed below. Other
community services related issues are not included as part of this study.
Environmental Issues
Acid sulfate soils exposed from past development are impacting on the water
quality of the lake.
The groundwater levels and the extraction rates are not monitored. Anecdotal
evidence suggests that the water level falls during long periods of no rain. However
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