June 20, 2018
Irrigators on the Boyne River & Tarong Water Scheme will have significantly less water available for them to use in 2018-19.
Predicted allocations released on Wednesday by SunWater show a 55 to 95 per cent drop in Medium Priority water allocations, ie. down from 100 per cent in 2017-18 to between 5 and 45 per cent.
The predictions indicate the percentage of an irrigation customer’s purchased water entitlement expected to be made available for use within a “water year”.
Irrigators on the Barker-Barambah Water Scheme will also have less water available for them to use in 2018-19.
Predicted allocations show a 1 to 6 per cent drop in Medium Priority water allocations, down from 17 per cent to 10-16 per cent.
Both water schemes have a forecast High Priority allocation of 100 per cent.
The water allocations at this stage are only predictions; they will be fully calculated on July 1.
The figures are calculated on the amount of water in the dams plus variable factors such as evaporation, seepage and use.
SunWater Chief Executive Officer Nicole Hollows said there had been a lack of significant inflows into the Boyne River and Barker-Barambah Creek system this wet season.
“We understand this is a difficult time for some customers, as low allocations can have a significant impact on their business,” Ms Hollows said.
“We will be working closely with our customers in schemes affected by lower announced allocations to minimise losses and maximise available water.”
Medium Priority water allocations generally have lower reliability compared with High Priority water allocations and are mainly used for agricultural production.
High Priority customers pay a higher fee for more reliable water access; these allocations are typically used for town water supplies and industrial use.
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Current Dam Levels (June 20)
- Barker Barambah Water Supply Scheme – Bjelke-Petersen Dam – 20.1 per cent
- Boyne River & Tarong Water Supply Scheme – Boondooma Dam – 38.3 per cent
