Caboolture has emerged as one of Moreton Bay’s worst-hit suburbs for wastewater blockages, with more than 130 incidents recorded in the past year and neighbouring communities also under pressure to curb what goes down their drains.
New figures from Unitywater show Caboolture ranked second across its service region for the number of blockages reported during 2024/25, accounting for 134 of the utility’s 4,395 incidents. Other suburbs on the list included Redcliffe, Clontarf, Narangba and Deception Bay, highlighting a widespread challenge for households across the Moreton Bay area.
Unitywater reported that blockages are most often caused by items such as wet wipes, nappies, sanitary products, paper towels, and cotton tips. These combine with fats, oils, and food scraps to create hard blockages in household pipes, neighbourhood wastewater lines, and even pumps.
The consequences can be severe, ranging from sewage backing up into homes to public overflows in streets that carry health and environmental risks.
Practical Advice for Households
The utility emphasised that only urine, faeces, and toilet paper should ever be flushed. Unlike wipes and tissues, toilet paper is designed to break down quickly in water. To protect kitchen pipes, residents are advised to scrape food scraps into bins, wipe pans before rinsing, and store used cooking oil in jars for disposal with household rubbish. Sink strainers can also help keep scraps and coffee grounds from entering pipes.
Caboolture is not alone in facing challenges. Unitywater’s figures show that 1,011 blockages came from just ten suburbs in the Moreton Bay, Sunshine Coast and Noosa regions.
With Unitywater investing $2 billion over the next five years to strengthen water and wastewater infrastructure for more than 800,000 people, the organisation has stressed that avoiding preventable blockages is an essential step in supporting reliable services.
Unitywater’s Top 10 Suburbs for Wastewater Blockages (2024/25)
| Rank | Suburb | Number of Blockages | Region |
| 1 | Buderim | 237 | Sunshine Coast |
| 2 | Caboolture | 134 | Moreton Bay |
| 3 | Nambour | 105 | Sunshine Coast |
| 4 | Redcliffe | 92 | Moreton Bay |
| 5 | Maroochydore | 92 | Sunshine Coast |
| 6 | Clontarf | 90 | Moreton Bay |
| 7 | Tewantin | 90 | Noosa |
| 8 | Narangba | 89 | Moreton Bay |
| 9 | Deception Bay | 82 | Moreton Bay |
| 10 | Noosaville | 73 | Noosa |
| Total | 1,011 | — |
Published 19-Aug-2025
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