Environmental Health Services

Clean drinking water is very important to stop people getting sick.

Tasmanian water quality is governed by the Tasmanian Drinking Water Guidelines, which provide a reference on what defines safe, good-quality water, how it can be achieved and how it can be assured. They support the principles, management practices, preventive measures and guideline values contained in the Australian Drinking Water Guidelines.

View more information on the Tasmanian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines.

Your drinking water

Responsibility for your drinking water depends on where your water comes from.

• If you are on mains water, you should contact TasWater about your water quality on 13MYWATER (136992). View more on mains water and treated water supplies.
• If you drink from a rainwater tank, dam or bore you may need to make sure your own water is safe to drink. View more on rural water supplies.
• If you get your water from a private water supplier, you can get information from them. Private water suppliers must be registered with Council. View more on private water suppliers.
• If you get your water from a commercial water carrier, you should contact us. Water carriers must be registered with Council. View more on commercial water carriers.

Becoming a water supplier

To register as a water supplier you will need complete an application form and pay a fee. link to water carrier application form

Heat Pumps (reverse cycle air conditioners) are designed and built to Australian Standards in order to minimise inherently noisy designs entering the market. The sound output of each unit will usually be indicated on a descriptive plate as a Sound Pressure Level, for example 50dB(A). Before installing a heat pump the effects of noise from the unit on your property, as well as neighbouring properties should be considered. Noise problems usually occur when the effects of noise emission from the outdoor unit are not carefully considered when selecting its location, such as facing the unit directly at a neighbour’s window.

Heat Pump Installation Guidelines

What is vaccination?

Vaccination is a simple, safe, and effective way of protecting you against harmful diseases, before you come into contact with them. It uses your body’s natural defenses to build resistance to specific infections and makes your immune system stronger.

Vaccines train your immune system to create antibodies, just as it does when it’s exposed to a disease. However, because vaccines contain only killed or weakened forms of germs like viruses or bacteria, they do not cause the disease or put you at risk of its complications

WHO - What Is Vaccination

Routine vaccination is now available for many once prevalent and often deadly diseases. For more information on immunisation; vaccines available; and for answers to many frequently asked questions about immunisation, please click on the following link to the Immunisation - Australian Government   

Council does not hold regular immunisation clinics for infants however  you can contact your GP to make an appointment or visit any of the Council run clinics around the state Council immunisation clinics schedule | Tasmanian Department of Health

School Immunisations

Council undertakes an annual school immunisation program for the two schools within the Southern Midlands municipality, Oatlands District and Campania High  for both Grade 7 and Grade 10 students. This is a free service.

Grade 7:

• Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis (whooping cough) – Boostrix vaccine 1 dose
• Human papillomavirus – Gardasil vaccine 1 dose

Grade 10:

• Meningococcal ACWY – MenQuadfi vaccine 1 dose

Consent is provided via the Vitavo software. Schools will distribute QR codes and links to parents at the start of each year. Parents should complete a YES or NO consent via Vitavo.

Immunisations are provided in accordance with the National Immunisation Program, information of which is available at the  Immunisation Schedule Tasmania

Records

Council maintains records of school immunisations administered in 2024 and earlier. Copies of these records are available free of charge from the Council office. From 2025 onwards, vaccinations are provided through Vitavo via a self-managed online portal, with records subsequently uploaded to the Australian Immunisation Register.

For further information please contact Council’s Environmental Health Officer, at Council’s Development & Environmental Services office.

Council does not have a By-Law in relation to Incinerators/Backyard Burning, and this means that the Environmental Management and Pollution Control (Distributed Atmospheric Emissions) Regulations 2018 cover backyard burning in the open and in incinerators.

More information is available on the EPA website - https://epa.tas.gov.au/environment/air/backyard-burning A pamphlet summarising the provisions relating to backyard burning can be reached through the following link-    Burning Pamphlet

Excessive noise can be considered an environmental nuisance and is legislated under the Environmental Management and Pollution Control (Noise) Regulations 2016

Regulations about the permitted hours of use for particular types of vehicles, machinery, equipment, heat pumps, and music for further information can be found on the EPA website. 

Noise Complaints Fact Sheet

Who deals with noise Complaints

Noise pollution or nuisance is generally investigated by Council's Environmental Health Officer during normal office hours and Tasmania Police after hours and on weekends.  You also have the option of calling the Environmental Protection Authority for repeated noise issues.

How to make a Complaint

A complaint must be in writing and include the address where the noise is coming from, be able to describe the sort of noise, its volume, duration and other relevant information. You should also attempt to keep a history, log or diary of the noise, as this will assist the investigation and may be considered evidence in some cases.

What will Council do about the Noise

When dealing with noise complaints Council strongly encourage both parties to discuss the issue before becoming involved.  Sometimes the creator of the noise does not even realise that they are causing a problem and the matter can often be resolved at this point without Council or police involvement. 

Council Officers will first attempt to discuss the issue with the other party.  If negotiations fail or the noise nuisance continues then Council will take whatever action deemed necessary under the Act.

In some circumstances, Council may require the complaint attendance in court.

For further information please contact Council’s Environmental Health Officer, at Council’s Development & Environmental Services office, located at Kempton.

A nuisance can be anything that unreasonably interferes with your enjoyment of your environment. It includes things such as:

• noise – e.g music, power tools, heat pumps etc.
• odour
• smoke – e.g. wood-heater smoke, incinerators or burning off
• litter.

It is legally considered to be a nuisance if it is, or might be, a danger or harm to the health, safety or welfare of the public, causes excessive levels of noise or pollution, is a fire risk or is an unsightly article or rubbish.

For more information regarding environmental nuisances please:

• visit the Tasmanian Environment Protection Authority Division’s website
• Wood heaters and cookers
• Backyard burning
• Noise

Things to consider before contacting Council to lodge a concern –

• Have you spoken with your neighbour about your concern?
• Do you have photographic evidence, should Council require it?
• Regarding noise nuisances, have you kept a noise diary with dates & times of nuisance?
• Do you have the correct address of where the concern is being emitted from?

On-site wastewater management systems are used for the treatment of wastewater in those areas where connection to a reticulated sewerage scheme is not available. sewage.

Prior to installation of a domestic on-site wastewater management system approval must be obtained from Council. This is achieved by gaining the expertise of a suitably qualified person to undertake a site and soil evaluation and design a system for you. This report must then be submitted to Council with a Special Plumbing Permit application.

Please note that the installation of an on-site wastewater system must only occur after a Special Plumbing Permit and Plumbing Permit has been applied for and approved by Council.

Once the system is installed the owner must ensure that it complies with all conditions placed on the permit, and that it does not create a nuisance.

A place of assembly is required for any mass outdoor public event. This means an event with over 1000 people for 2 hours or more. It may be any performance, exhibition, circus, festival, food festival, pageant, regatta, sports event, dance or publicly advertised lecture.

If you are planning to operate an event of that size and nature, or you are planning to lease a property as a place of assembly, you need to apply for a place of assembly licence.

Place of Assembly Fact Sheet
Place of Assembly Application Form

A burial on private land is a burial other than in a cemetery.

Provisions covering private or bush burials are contained in section 41 of the Burial and Cremation Act 2002. 

Persons can apply in writing to the General Manager of the Southern Midlands Council.  They will need to supply the following:

• Written permission from the landowner
• Copy of current land title
• Detailed description of the proposed site of the burial

Council will then apply to the Director of Public Health (Department of Health) for approval.

Private Burial Application Form

You will need this registration if you own premises that has a regulated system, which include:

• cooling towers
• air recirculation towers
• warm-water systems
• any other system or process that may involve a risk of legionnaire's disease (legionellosis).

Please note that:

• household or domestic cooling towers do not need to be registered
• as a condition of your registration you must ensure that the regulated system is operated according to any rules or guidelines issued under the Act.

Regulated Systems Application Form