Water restrictions are looming for Gold Coast

WATER restrictions are looming for the Gold Coast as the combined capacity of south east Queensland dams hovers around or below 55 per cent.

And while the Bureau of Meteorology predicts a wetter than average summer, authorities say the unpredictability of where rainfall will occur means it’s up to everyone to conserve water.

Medium-level water restrictions will be enforced by water retailers in south east Queensland (SEQ) when the water grid drops below 50 per cent.

These will focus on curbing outdoor use, in gardens and washing cars, while households will be asked to limit water use 140 litres per person per day.

The Hinze Dam in the Gold Coast hinterland is at 91.2 per cent, but is included in the SEQ water grid.

Minister for Water Glenn Butcher said for the majority of SEQ, the BOM was forecasting a 60 per cent chance of above median rainfall for November to January.

“However, despite a similar BOM wet season forecast last year, insufficient rainfall in the Wivenhoe catchment resulted in the ‘green drought’ conditions continuing this year,” he said.

“We’ve had a lot of rain in SEQ this week but we know every drop of water is precious.

“That’s why we’re urging all SEQ residents to be vigilant about water use.

“Right around SEQ people are seeing green parks and gardens in their suburbs and may not realise that many parts of the region remain drought affected.”

Mr Butcher said SEQ’s major storage dam, Wivenhoe Dam, provided more than half of the region’s water supply and despite the recent rain the preceding dry conditions meant there had been minimal run-off of that rain into the dam.

“Seqwater have ramped up output from the Gold Coast Desalination Plant to supplement urban water supply and the Western Corridor Recycled Water Scheme has been providing water to industrial customers,” he said.

“But we need everyone to play their part and continue being vigilant when it comes to being waterwise.”

Seqwater chief executive Neil Brennan said SEQ’s current combined dam levels were about 3 per cent less than the same time last year.

“Making sure we have enough water for today and into the future will be a combination of using our existing infrastructure to its full potential and continuing to use water wisely,” he said.

“Seqwater is managing the SEQ Water Grid – our connected network of bulk water pipelines and water treatment plants – to best preserve our largest water storage.

“Having these climate-resilient assets means we have more options to manage water supply challenges arising from sporadic rainfall, drought, climate change and population growth.”