Sydney running out of water due to drought

Australia’s biggest city Sydney is running down its water supply at the fastest rate on record with dams expected to fall below half maximum capacity due to the worst drought on record.

According to the New South Wales (NSW) state regulator WaterNSW, the Warragamba Dam, the city’s main water supply, was sitting at 51.4% capacity, down 17.8% in a year and little more than half its level just two years earlier. The amount of water flowing into the dam was just 10% of what it was a year ago.

The total water level in Sydney’s 11 dams was 50.1%, forcing authorities to introduced water restrictions in recent months.

At the current rate of decline, discounting rainfall, Sydney dams would only have enough water reserves for another two years, according to figures provided by WaterNSW.

Sydney has resorted to water-saving methods in recent months including enforced water restrictions, which limit the amount of water people can use outdoors.

Via Reuters/ Sydney Morning Herald