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Well, it’s been a wet winter – among the wettest in decades, in fact – but the Water Corporation has warned rain runoff to our state’s dams has continued to drop.
9News Perth reported water run-off to dams was down 80 per cent in the last 50 years, with repeated winters where we endured (or enjoyed) below-average rainfall taking their toll.
The Water Corporation’s Evan Hambleton likened our dams to “a great big sponge – and that sponge has got really dry”.
Perth might have had a wet winter, but don’t think that means our dams are overflowing.Credit: Nine News Perth
“It takes a lot more water now to soak the sponge before we start seeing some runoff into our dams,” he said.
WA’s dams are currently just under half full, and rainfall is supplying just 15 per cent of Perth’s drinking water, 9News Perth reported, with the rest made up of groundwater and desalination – the latter of which is an energy-intensive, and therefore expensive, process.
Perth households are also consuming more water, with the per-property average up by 18,000 litres over the last three years.
Associate Professor Sally Thompson, from the University of Western Australia’s Centre for Water, said the increased consumption risked groundwater levels being put under more strain, and if supply couldn’t keep up with demand, residents could face stronger water restrictions in the future.
