Perth Weekly Water Update - 22 April 2022
| Target | Actual | |
|---|---|---|
| April water use to date |
18.0 billion litres |
18.8 billion litres |
| Dam storage levels | N/A | 51.1% |
| Monthly streamflow into dams | N/A | 0 billion litres |
| April rainfall to date | 44.2mm (April average rainfall 1876-2016) | 51.0mm |
| Note: 1 billion litres = approximately 400 Olympic swimming pools. Please note the figures in this table are rounded (except for rainfall) to the nearest whole number. | ||
Water use
Average water use over the past week was 857 million litres per day – above the demand forecast of 831 million litres per day.
Daily water use for the last five days
| Date | Actual water use (million litres) | Forecast water use (million litres) |
|---|---|---|
| 22/04/2022 | 927 | 820 |
| 21/04/2022 | 858 | 820 |
| 20/04/2022 | 874 | 820 |
| 19/04/2022 | 876 | 820 |
| 18/04/2022 | 803 | 844 |
| Note: water use is calculated up to 8am each day for the previous 24 hour period. | ||
Since 1 July 2021 to date, we have used 258.04 billion litres of water – which is 10.17 billion litres above the forecast target for this period.
Dam levels (total for 15 dams)
The dam storage levels are slightly down on last week and are sitting at a combined 51.1 per cent* of full capacity.
*Please note some dams are filled from different sources - dam levels include the transfer of groundwater and desalinated seawater from treatment plants as well as streamflow (that comes from rainfall). As we use many different sources of water, dams are no longer an accurate indicator of the health of Perth's overall water supply situation.
Streamflow (total for 15 dams)
From 1 May 2021, the dams have received 138.7 billion litres of streamflow. The post-1975 average for the May to April period (called the streamflow year) is 177.5 billion litres.
Annual rainfall
Perth has received 55.6mm of rainfall since 1 January 2022. The average (1876-2016) rainfall for the same period to the end of April is 85.9mm.
General water news
We love our pipes but, unfortunately, nothing lasts forever. If you frequent the popular Beaufort Street café strip, we’ll be showing some TLC to our pipes in the area over the next few months.
Starting next week (from 26 April), we’ll be replacing 2.1 kilometres of water pipe between Walcott Street in Mount Lawley and Dundas Road in Inglewood, as part of our Pipes for Perth Program.
The vital upgrades to the 100-year-old water mains are required to bolster water supply reliability for local residents and businesses, and reduce the potential for future leaks and breaks.
Works will be completed in three stages by Subiaco contractor Civcon, with each stage lasting approximately eight weeks:
- Stage One: Walcott Street to First Avenue
- Stage Two: First Avenue to Central Avenue
- Stage Three: Central Avenue to Dundas Road
During construction, Beaufort Street northbound will be closed within each stage area, with traffic management and detours in place. Pedestrian access to businesses will remain open, and there will be no impact to water supply.
Since 2016, Pipes for Perth has replaced more than 200 kilometres of water main across the metropolitan area, with more than $46 million spent replacing ageing pipes in Perth in 2020-21 alone.
The project is expected to be complete in late 2022. Further information and details on road closures can be found here.