State of the Storages
February 2012
- Dams post half typical January decline
- Rainfall below average; runoff above average
- Water use up 9.1%
Wetter catchment conditions were the key to Melbourne’s water storages recording less than half of their usual January decline.
Storages started January at 66.1% full and finished the month at 65.2% - a net decrease of 15 billion litres. Dam levels typically decline by about 2% in January.
Despite below-average rainfall at the catchments, the amount of water that flowed into dams (streamflow) was more than 30% above the average. This was due to the flow-on effects of a wet December, which meant a good proportion of the January rain resulted in runoff into the dams.
The modest drop was a welcome result for a month when storages generally record one of their biggest monthly declines for the year. Storages are expected to decline in January, but the good news is the decrease is well below what we’ve seen in the past, particularly during the drought years.
The January result is a positive start to the year, but it is important to remember some of our hottest and driest months are to come. Storages tend to continue to decline for the first half of the year due to lower rainfall and drier catchments, which means less water flows into the dams.
January water consumption across all uses (residential, business and industry) was 9.1% higher, or 95 million litres a day more, than the same period last year.