Towns still missing water target

By Jeremy Sollars

Warwick’s Leslie Dam can supply town water for the next 20 months before it will run dry, a new council report estimates.

The report on water storage and consumption in the region to be presented at next week’s September council meeting also states Stanthorpe’s Storm King Dam’s ‘estimated depletion’ – assuming no inflow – is 14 months away, and Warwick’s ‘back-up’ Connolly Dam has 16 months to go.

But that shouldn’t serve as an encouragement for town dwellers to be less vigilant with water use and the council’s daily residential consumption target remains at 200 litres per person per day.

The council has foreshadowed a move to the highest level of urban water restrictions in November, with medium-level restrictions currently in place.

The council report notes that the spring and summer weather outlook for the region is still for an ‘El Nino’ pattern to fully develop by the end of spring – which means higher-than-average temperatures and below-average rainfall this spring and summer.

Reports to the September council meeting also suggest Allora residents are the most frugal when it comes to using town water, at least in the month of August.

Residential or ‘town water’ consumption for August across the majority of small towns and villages on the Southern Downs and Granite Belt was higher in 2018 than in August 2017.

And in most cases it was well over the council’s 200 litre per person per day target.

The council reports show consumption in the urban areas of both Warwick and Stanthorpe was lower in August 2018 than August 2017.

The comparisons are based on a ‘2.3 per person household’, with Warwick residents on average using just over 250 litres per person per day in August of this year, compared with 300 litres per day in August 2017.

The drop was considerably larger in Stanthorpe, where residents used an average of just over 250 litres per day in August of this year, as opposed to just over 450 litres per day in August 2017.

Of the smaller towns, only three came in with an average consumption for August – for both years – below the council’s 200 litre per person per day target, but overall consumption was still higher for the month this year compared to last year, with the exception of Pratten.

Allora residents used the least amount of water in August of both years, with each resident using just 120 litres in August this year, a slight rise from 110 litres per person in August 2017.

Other towns and villages…

Killarney

2018 – 380 litres per day

2017 – 340 litres per day

Wallangarra

2018 – 240 litres per day

2017 – 200 litres per day

Dalveen

2018 – 275 litres per day

2017 – 110 litres per day

Leyburn

2018 – 180 litres per day

2017 – 100 litres per day

Pratten

2018 – 225 litres per day

2017 – 250 litres per day

Yangan

2018 – 125 litres day

2017 – 70 litres per day

(Figures are for month of August and are approximate)

• For more information on water restrictions visit www.sdrc.qld.gov.au