Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 19, 2026

National Sewerage Program

The National Sewerage Program was an Australian federal program under the Whitlam government established to provide funding for the expansion of municipal sewerage systems. At the time Australia was lagging behind other developed nations and it was later estimated that, as of the commencement of the program in 1972, 17.2% of the Australian population were not connected to sewerage. Even in major population centers like Sydney and Melbourne, there was a backlog of over 318,000 homes waiting to be connected to municipal sewerage systems. The program was administered by the newly formed Department of Urban and Regional Development, and over AUD$330 million of funding was allocated to be distributed to individual states and territories over ten years. Over the life of the program the sewerage connection backlog was reduced by 30% to 40%. The program was abolished in 1977 by the incumbent Fraser government. Consequently, many communities struggled to connect to sewerage for decades afterwards.

Last revised
Jun 19, 2026
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≈ 2 min
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Citations
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Source
Wikipedia ↗
National Sewerage Program
Type of projectPublic works
CountryAustralia
Prime Minister(s)
Ministry
Key peopleTom Uren
Launched1972 (1972)
Closed30 August 1977 (1977-08-30)
BudgetAUD$330 million
StatusClosed

The National Sewerage Program was an Australian federal program under the Whitlam government2 established to provide funding for the expansion of municipal sewerage systems.3 At the time Australia was lagging behind other developed nations4 and it was later estimated that, as of the commencement of the program in 1972, 17.2% of the Australian population were not connected to sewerage.5 Even in major population centers like Sydney and Melbourne, there was a backlog of over 318,000 homes waiting to be connected to municipal sewerage systems.6 The program was administered by the newly formed Department of Urban and Regional Development, and over AUD$330 million of funding was allocated to be distributed to individual states and territories over ten years.75 Over the life of the program the sewerage connection backlog was reduced by 30% to 40%.6 The program was abolished in 1977 by the incumbent Fraser government.89 Consequently, many communities struggled to connect to sewerage for decades afterwards.10

References

References

  1. NATIONAL SETTLEMENT DIVISION (Report). Department of Environment, Housing and Community Development. 1976-06-30. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
  2. "sunday TIMESTYLE The Whitlam legacy — unburied by seven years of Fraserism". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 1985-11-03. p. 5. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  3. Drum, The (2014-10-21). "Things you didn't know Gough Whitlam did". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  4. Davidson, Helen (2014-10-21). "Gough Whitlam – in his own words". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  5. DEPARTMENT OF URBAN AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT SECOND ANNUAL REPORT 1973-74 (Annual Report) (Report). Department of Urban and Regional Development. 1974-06-30. pp. 39–40. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
  6. Murphy, Damien (2014-10-21). "Gough Whitlam left a long list of achievements". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  7. "Gough Whitlam — Prime Ministers". Australian Prime Ministers. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  8. "Budget hits job chances". Broadcaster (Fairfield, NSW : 1935 - 1978). 1977-08-30. p. 2. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  9. "ELECTIONS 1980 FRASER GOVT: lies, lies, lies, lies and more lies". Woroni (Canberra, ACT : 1950 - 2007). 1980-10-02. p. 8. Retrieved 2020-01-18.
  10. "Local governments 'need more funds'". Canberra Times (ACT : 1926 - 1995). 1985-02-27. p. 14. Retrieved 2020-01-18.