What the Shire's plan says about Somerville
The plan counts 1,396 unsewered developable lots in Somerville. None were rated very high risk; 539 were rated high, 807 medium and 50 low.
Lot size is the local issue. The Shire says denser areas such as Somerville, Hastings and Tyabb carry more risk because each lot has less usable area, and it ranks usable lot area as the next biggest limit there after soil type.
Somerville facts for plumbing
Mortgaged houses
At the 2021 Census, 82.3% of occupied homes in the suburb of Somerville were separate houses and 17.1% semis or townhouses. 47.5% had a mortgage; 16.0% were rented.
Ask for your rating
The Shire keeps a risk rating for every unsewered property, and an owner can ask Council for the rating of their land.
Records back to the 1970s
Septic permits are on the Shire's database from the early 2000s, with paper files going back to the 1970s.
South East Water
Somerville is on South East Water's supply list.
Buying or building on an unsewered lot
Limited usable area on a block is the constraint the Shire names for Somerville. Before you extend, ask Council for the property's rating and the original permit, then have a plumber who does septic systems check the tank and disposal area against them.
The plan says information should exist for most systems installed since 1970, and for all of them since 2000, so a missing permit is worth chasing.
On sewer instead?
Then South East Water's rules apply. It maintains the sewer up to the inspection opening, and the pipes upstream of that are the owner's. The water side splits the same way: the meter and the pipe from the street to it are South East Water's, and the pipe from the meter to the house is yours. A blocked drain on your side is a plumber's job.
What we would do
Get the Shire's risk rating and permit file for your Somerville property before anyone quotes on septic work, and keep every service record from then on. If you're on sewer, find your inspection opening and keep it clear so a plumber can reach it quickly. Then tell us what's happening and a licence-checked specialist can quote.