Emma Pritchard

The rain has eased, and the floodwater has receded, and clean-up operations are well underway throughout the Clarence Valley.

As the wet weather intensified earlier this month, many Clarence Valley residents and business owners took proactive and precautionary steps to protect their homes and their livelihoods by sandbagging doorways, roller doors, and wastewater drains in and around their residences.

While some smaller regional communities and remote properties were cut off by rising floodwater and residents in low lying areas were inundated, flooding did not occur within the larger townships after the Clarence River peaked at a major flood level of 5.74m around 11pm on March 9 at the Prince Street gauge in Grafton.

With the threat of flooding now over, Clarence Valley Council (CVC) is advising residents to exercise caution while removing and disposing of sandbags, particularly ones which have come into contact with floodwater and must be properly disposed of.

It is recommended that sturdy gloves be worn when handling wet sandbags which can contain contaminants including chemicals, waste, and diseases.

Unused (dry) sand from emptied sandbags may be placed onto lawns and gardens and cannot be distributed on beaches or other natural areas to avoid cross contamination.

Empty sandbags can be placed in home compost units or in the red bin.

Grafton Regional Landfill, located at 704 Armidale Road, Elland, is also accepting flood waste products with residents asked to confirm and provide details of their original locality prior to disposal.