Coliban Water is reminding customers to use water wisely this summer by following the Permanent Water Saving Rules that are in place at all times.
Manager Regional Liveability Steve Healy said it had been a dry spring in our region but the Coliban River catchment storages, near Kyneton, were in a good position going into the peak summer demand period.
“Malmsbury, Lauriston and Upper Coliban reservoirs are currently at 80 per cent with a combined volume of 55,805 megalitres.
“This spring we had 120 millimetres of rain at our Malmsbury Reservoir, which is around 40 per cent less than our long-term average.
“Our inflow for spring was 5,439 megalitres, which is around 80 per cent less than our long-term average and around 54 per cent less than we received for the same period last year.
“Although our catchment inflows are low, we have been managing our water resources for dry conditions. Diversification of our supply systems give us greater access to water to ensure we have supply in store and customers can remain on Permanent Water Saving Rules,” said Mr Healy.
Coliban Water has nine separate water supply systems across the region, each with different supply source and level of water security which are all reliant on rainfall over winter and spring.
Coliban Water’s Annual Water Outlook will be published this month, which looks at water resource availability, with consideration of the conditions experienced last year and the forecast for 2019.
“The Bureau of Meteorology is forecasting dry El Niño like conditions with warmer temperatures this summer but we are well prepared to meet our urban and rural customers’ water needs,” said Mr Healy.
“We know the importance of preparing for dry conditions as we face the challenges of climate change, rainfall variability and growth in population and demand.”
“Using water efficiently is everyone’s responsibility to help secure our water supplies and maintain greener and more liveable communities now and into the future,” said Mr Healy.
All the towns in the Coliban Water region are on Permanent Water Saving Rules and rural customers have access to 100 per cent of their licence volume for this season.
“Permanent Water Saving Rules are five key water saving rules to ensure we use water efficiently and avoid wastage to conserve it for the future.
“The rules are easy to follow. The main ones are to use a leak-free hose fitted with a trigger nozzle and only use watering systems between 6pm and 10am on any day,” said Mr Healy.
The Victorian Government’s Target Your Water Use program assists and encourages regional Victorians to also use water wisely inside their homes and businesses.
For further information see our Water Security and Saving Water web pages on our website.
Last updated on 09 Jul 2019