31 July 2009
STORAGES BANK 19 DAYS’ SUPPLY IN JULY
- Good rain but minor storage increase
- Streamflow into reservoirs 40% below average
- Total consumption down 2% on July last year
Above-average rainfall helped Melbourne’s storages post a modest increase during July – effectively setting aside the equivalent of 19 days’ water supply.
Storages started the month at 26.0% of capacity and finished at 27.0 %, representing a net rise of 19 billion litres.
Manager of Water Supply, John Woodland, said July was the first month since December 2008 where the total amount of water going into storages was higher than the amount of water coming out.
“This is normally the time of year when the storages begin to recover because there is more rain around and water use generally declines,” said Mr Woodland.
“We would have liked to have seen a bigger increase from the rain we had in July, but runoff into storages was 40% below average because the catchments were so dry.
“Melburnians did a good job to help sustain the increase, with total water consumption 2% lower than July last year.
“More rain and continued water saving will help us bank as much water as we can now ahead of the summer months, when there is a greater demand for water,” he added.
Melbourne households kept water use under the Target of 155 litres per person a day throughout July and have now met the target for 21 weeks in a row.
IMPACT OF JULY ON WATER STORAGES
- An average of 130.2 mm of rain was received over the four major catchments during July, compared with the 30-year average of 107.4 mm (21.2% above average).
- July streamflow into reservoirs in the four major catchments totalled 36.1 billion litres, compared with the 30-year average of 60.5 billion (40.3% below average). This translated into a 19 billion litre net gain, after consumption.
- Overall July consumption (all uses) decreased by 2.3% compared to July last year.
Storages media contact: Nicolas McGay (03) 9235 2278; 0438 981 836
Target 155 media contact: Cheryl West (03) 9872 1301; 0412 514 946