Careless building and development practises involving concrete are to blame for an increasing number of sewer pipe blockages that are costing thousands of dollars to repair.

The council’s wastewater network operations manager, Keith Morris, says more care needs to be taken to locate private and public sewers before driving in piles or laying footings.

“There have been several incidents where construction contractors have failed to identify where the sewer pipes are, the pipes have been damaged and then concrete has seeped into them, set and blocked the pipes,” he says.

“Generally, we don’t know there’s a problem until wastewater starts leaking out, then we have to find the damaged pipe and repair it, or if the damage is too extensive, replace it entirely.

“With more intensive development, repairing and/or replacing damaged sewer pipes is becoming more difficult, more expensive and more of an inconvenience to property owners”.

Cement, concrete and wastewater overflows also have a significant effect on the environment, degrading water quality, killing fish and organisms that live in streams and pose serious public health risks.