Environmental Health and Animal Management

The environmental health program provides inspection and assessment services to protect public health and includes the following activities:

• food safety
• disease prevention and control
• public health education and promotion
• assessment of applications for public gatherings such as festivals
• unhealthy premises
• cooling towers and warm water systems
• public health risk activities
• administering school and community immunisations programs
• exhumations
• onsite waste water management
• recreational and bathing water quality
• responding to public and environmental health complaints
• air, water and solid pollution
• smoke-free public places

In 2014–15 the Environmental Health Unit inspected and/or assessed 1563 food businesses; immunised 3718 babies, school children and adults; issued 1265 licences to businesses and investigated and resolved 309 public or environmental health issues.

The animal management program is responsible for dog licensing and control. Activities include dog registrations, applications for kennel licences, investigation and action on complaints about barking dogs, roaming animals or dog attacks.