Ipswich City Council

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Division 9 - Councillor Sheila Ireland

Frequently Asked Questions

Nuisances

Don't be a nuisance - be a good neighbour

The Queensland Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has introduced laws relating to the control of nuisances in order to help make Queensland a more liveable place.

The Environmental Protection Regulation 1998 aims to strike a balance between protecting our quality of life and the reasonable pursuit of activities that have the potential to annoy others.

How do the laws work?

The nuisance laws cover issues such as noise from residential premises, light, dust, smoke and odour. They are complaint driven - that means a complaint must be made before a problem will be investigated. Anonymous complaints will not be accepted, but complaints will be kept confidential.

Once a complaint is made, it will be investigated and appropriate action taken.

Penalties

Investigating officers have the power to issue warning notices, on-the-spot fines, or abatement notcies.

A warning notice may be issued first, with information on the laws and how to comply with the requirements.

Fines can be issued for common noise offences, usually after a warning notice has been issued. The minimum fine is $150, and the maximum is $600 for corporations not complying with abatement notices.

Abatement notices can be issued for a number of offcences relating to noise levels and emissions. Abatement notices are issued to the person causing the nuisance and can require the person to stop their activities, or to reduce the nuisance to an acceptable level.

People issued with fines and abatement notices can appeal against the decision.

Free Plants

As an Ipswich resident you are entitled to eight free plants every financial year under the Council's Free Plant Program.

To collect your free plants, present one of the following documents to either the Queen's Park or Goodna Nursery:

property rates notice;
a voucher from the Defence Housing Authority; or
a rental statement from the Department of Public Works & Housing; or
landlords current rates notice (for private renters).

Other Free Plant Categories available (by application) are as follows:

Schools
Sporting Clubs
Churches
Properties over 4 hectares
River Blocks
Land for Wildlife Care Groups
Wildlife Carers
Voluntary Conservation Agreement (VCA) holders
Primary Producers - must quote ABN:

Plants for the above categories are selected by the Nursery Staff from the Flora Data Base. Application Forms for the issue of these plants are available from the Nurseries or by calling my office on 3810 6899.

Nursery Opening Hours

Queen's Park Nursery

Goleby Avenue, Ipswich

Wednesday and Thursday - 7:30am to 12:00pm, 12:30pm to 3:30pm
Saturday (Closed Easter Saturday) - 8:00am to 12:00pm

Goodna Nursery

Stuart Street, Goodna

Wednesday - 8:00am to 12:00pm

Last Updated 16 Oct 2007 |

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