A dam shame as rain misses
HEAVY rainfall brought to North Queensland by the arrival of Tropical Cyclone Debbie has bypassed Townsville, with Ross River Dam sitting at 18 per cent capacity as the low- pressure system moves south.
Townsville City Council Water and Waste Committee chair Paul Jacob said the region had missed out on the drenching many residents had hoped would come.
‘ There’s really not much of a change to the dam after the city only received short and small showers as the cyclone made its way down the coast,” he said.
“We were all hoping for heavy rainfall more than anything else but we just didn’t get that because of the fact the cyclone was south of us.
“Places like Mackay and the hinterland got quite a bit of rain, some of those downpours would have got pretty close to filling the dam.”
Cr Jacob said the result proved council and the water task force, established as part of the City Deal, had to push on for long- term water solutions for the city.
“The water task force is critical to our city and securing our water supply,” he said.
“While it’s not normal for the catchment to miss out on this much rainfall over the years, we have to set ourselves up for the future.
“Council has a range of solutions and the task force is looking at the available options.
“All of the solutions that we’re going to put on the table, they will be critical for the long- term position of Townsville moving forward.”
Mayor Jenny Hill said water security would remain a priority for the council.
“Obviously it’s still a problem. It’s a shame to see falls of 200 to 300mm occur south but sadly that can’t be helped,” she said.
“We’ll continue to push for those solutions but in the meantime what we’ve got to concentrate on is helping our local councils affected by this weather event.”