5 December 2008
CONSISTENT RAIN HELPS RUNOFF, WATER USE
A second week of above average rainfall for Melbourne’s catchments has slightly increased storages and helped keep water consumption down.
Storages crept up by 0.3% of capacity (4.5 billion litres) in the past week.
This lift is roughly the same as the total net increase in reservoir levels for spring as a whole, reflecting ongoing uncertainty in rainfall and runoff patterns.
The storage increase came after 25mm of rain fell over the major catchments, compared with the long-term average of 18mm for the period.
As the follow-up rain found the catchments fairly wet, runoff into storages was almost 17% above average.
This is only the second time in 2008 that weekly runoff has been at-or-above normal levels.
Storages are now 34.1% (604 billion litres) full, compared with 39.8% (705 billion litres) at the same time last year.
As seen in previous weeks the rain kept residential consumption down, with Melburnians using an average of 154 litres each per day – a litre below the target of 155 litres a day, which began on December 1.
More information on restrictions and tips on how to reach the target are available from Target 155 [website no longer available, visit Office of Water for this information] or by contacting the government water retailers.
Stage 3a restrictions and Target 155 are currently in place.
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Media Contact: Andrew McGinnes +613 9235 7277 +61 (0)403 930 846