Coliban Water’s storages are in a good position after above average rainfall this summer.
Executive General Manager Climate and Population Adaptation Steve Healy said the three Coliban River catchment storages, near Kyneton, are at 80 per cent, with a volume of 55,783 megalitres.
“We received 127 millimetres of rain at Malmsbury Reservoir this summer, which is 3 millimetres above our long-term summer average and 31 millimetres more than last summer,” said Mr Healy.
“The rain resulted in 2,183 megalitres of inflows to our reservoirs. This is less than half our long-term summer average and an indication of a drier catchment, which is part of the ongoing trend we are seeing in our region as a result of climate change.
“Our region is adapting to a hotter and drier climate, and we can’t be complacent and expect our current water sources to be as reliable in the future.
“Strategy 2030, our 10-year plan, is focused on this challenge and guides us to ensure there is enough water to sustain and grow economic activity and investment for our region,” said Mr Healy.
Additionally, Coliban Water’s 50-year plan to secure water resources, the Urban Water Strategy, is currently under review.
“Every five years we review our Urban Water Strategy to ensure our water security is on track and our modelling is up to date so we can continue to provide sustainable water services.
“Community and stakeholder engagement is an important part of the review, ensuring we represent community values and involve our customers in water planning and investment decisions. We’ll be engaging with customers across our region this autumn. Like our Facebook page to find out how you can be involved,” 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.
“We manage our water resources for dry conditions. The diversification of our supply systems has given us greater access to water to ensure we have supply in store.
“Our current allocations from supply systems managed by Grampians Wimmera Mallee Water and Goulburn-Murray Water have increased and we are well prepared to meet our urban and rural customers’ needs.
“All towns in our region are on Permanent Water Saving Rules and our rural customers have access to 100 per cent of their licence volume for this season.
“We remind all our customers to use water efficiently by following the Permanent Water Saving Rules. Using water efficiently is everyone’s responsibility to help secure water supplies for future generations. Everything we do to conserve water – even in the cooler months – helps our overall water security.
Further advice for customers on using water wisely in their homes, gardens and businesses is available through the Victorian Government’s Target Your Water Use program.
For further information see our Water security and How to save water pages on www.coliban.com.au
Last updated on 11 Mar 2021