Page 2375 - Week 08 - Thursday, 7 June 1990
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MINISTER FOR FINANCE AND URBAN SERVICES
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY QUESTION
Sewer Blockages
QUESTION NO. 168
Mrs Grassby - asked the Minister for Finance and Urban services:
(1) Was the Minister made aware ofthe ACT Electricity and Water Authoritys proposal to charge leaseholders for clearing blocked sewer drains outside of the leaseholders boundary before the Authority agreed to the proposal.
(2) What action does the minister intend to take to have ACTEW reverse this decision.
(3) Failing the minister taking action to reverse this decision does he stand by Mr McGraths undertaking that the Department of Urban Services will pick up the cost of fixing drain blockages caused by the roots of government-owned trees on nature strips.
Mr Duby - the answer to the Members question is as follows:
The ACT Electricity and Water Authority had devised their current sewer choke policy in an attempt to redress unsatisfactory past practices, wherein more than four out of five households were needlessly required to expend up to $500 simply to determine that liability was in fact theirs.
As these figures have been substantiated by the Master Plumbers Association and ACTEW have indicated that they will be accepting responsibility for those more costly service problems, such as when a drain crosses under a roadway, I believe that ACTEW should be commended in this instance for striving to achieve better customer service to the people of Canberra.
The matter of blockages to these drains by Government owned trees is simply a matter of liability wherein Government trees identified causing such problems do become the responsibility of the ACT Government.
However I do understand that the overall cost for. these type of blockages has been historically quite small.
2375
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