Updated October 2026
Amity Point is the quiet fishing village on the north-western corner of North Stradbroke Island (Minjerribah), facing back across the water, with a caravan park, a jetty and a small, largely low-rise community. It has no sewer at all, which makes it the most straightforward of the island townships to explain and the least like a mainland suburb. Redlands Blocked Drains is a local referral service. We put you in touch with QBCC-licensed local plumbers who work in Amity Point.
The gazetted locality name is Amity. Everyone calls it Amity Point, including the street signage and the council's own tourism material, so that is what this site calls it too.
Getting a plumber here, honestly
A work vehicle reaches Amity Point on the vehicle barge from Toondah Harbour at Cleveland to Dunwich, which runs about 45 to 50 minutes each way, and then by road across the island. Vehicles have to be booked ahead, the passenger ferries do not carry work vehicles or equipment, services can run late at low water on spring tides, and vehicle access permits apply on the island. So this is not a job anyone can promise to do today.
What we will do is call you back promptly and tell you honestly whether a local plumber can get to you, and when. Some of the trades who work the island live on it, which is often the fastest answer and usually the cheapest, because there is no crossing in their costs.
For current barge bookings and fares, go to the operator at SeaLink. This site publishes no fare and no timetable, because a state subsidy, an operator discount and a fuel surcharge all apply and the figures move.
North Stradbroke Island is also Minjerribah, the Quandamooka people hold recognised rights over the island, and large parts of it are national park and Quandamooka land. Access and works are not unrestricted anywhere on the island.
Amity Point is unsewered
Redland City Council states that residential areas in Amity are unsewered. That is the whole basis of the page.
There is no council sewer main to blame. Your wastewater goes to an on-site septic or treatment system on your own block, so a backing-up drain here is almost always a problem on your side of the fence, and the fix is a different job from a mainland sewer blockage. The council's three-step test, the inspection opening diagnosis and its sewer reimbursement process all assume a council main and none of them apply to you.
The council lists seven wastewater treatment plants, at Capalaba, Cleveland, Dunwich, Mount Cotton, Point Lookout, Thorneside and Victoria Point. Amity Point is not among them, even though two of the three island townships have one, so the unsewered status here is structural rather than a gap about to close.
What actually goes wrong in Amity Point
- A full tank. The cheapest cause to rule out, and a pump out is maintenance rather than a repair.
- A saturated disposal area. Low, sandy, waterfront ground with a high water table after wet-season rain will back a system up from the far end. Wet, smelly or unusually green ground over the trenches or irrigation field is the sign.
- A failed pump, blower or float switch on an aerated or advanced treatment system, which stops the process. Check whether an alarm has been silenced.
- Sand in stormwater. Island soil is sand, and it moves into pits and settles in flat runs, which is a different problem from a sewer blockage and needs water rather than a cutter to clear.
- Intermittent occupancy. Holiday houses, the caravan park's peaks and long idle periods all affect a biological system, and a sudden full house overloads one sized for ordinary use.
- Salt and exposure. Grates, risers, covers and metal fittings have a shorter life this close to the water.
The low, exposed foreshore matters here in another way. The Redland City Plan runs a coastal protection erosion prone areas overlay and a flood and storm tide hazard overlay, and Amity Point has a long-standing erosion history. The council's maps are the authority on any particular property, and work close to the water can attract extra assessment.
What the rules require
On-site systems in Redland City must meet plumbing, health and environmental standards, and council approval applies to installing or altering one. This site will not tell you a specific system type is mandatory here, because that claim is not verified on any council page we could find.
Plumbing and drainage work in Queensland requires a QBCC licence at any value, which is stricter than the general building work threshold. Ask for the licence number and check it on the QBCC register before signing. Before any excavation, use Before You Dig Australia.
What it costs
Clearing a blocked line into the tank is ordinary drain work in the usual $150 to $400 range, with a camera at $249 to $600 and jetting bundled at $350 to $900. On-site wastewater work, pump outs, pump and blower repairs and disposal area remediation, is priced separately. If a mainland plumber crosses, the barge booking and the travel go into the price. The cost guide sets out the ranges.
Frequently asked questions
Is it Amity or Amity Point?
The gazetted locality is Amity. In everyday use, on signs and in every search anyone types, it is Amity Point.
Is my blocked drain the council's problem?
No. Amity Point has no council sewer main. The tank, the pump and the disposal area are all on your block and all yours.
How long until a plumber can get here?
The callback is prompt. Attendance depends on the next available vehicle barge to Dunwich and the road across the island. The crossing is about 45 to 50 minutes each way, and the booking governs the timing.
The ground over my trenches is wet all the time. What does that mean?
Usually that the disposal area is struggling, which on low sandy waterfront ground with a high water table is common. That is a service and remediation question rather than a drain clear.
We only use the house some weekends. Anything to watch?
Have the system serviced on a schedule rather than when it fails, run water into the traps when you arrive to deal with the smell of a dry seal, and go easy on it for the first day of a full house.