Walcha Council launches new water usage tracker

"Walcha Council has been closely monitoring weekly usage of the town''s water supply for a considerable time, and has also been holding weekly drought meetings since Level 5 water restrictions were implemented in November last year," said Walcha Council general manager Anne Modderno.

"We want our community to be informed regarding current water storage levels and our usage. Our tracker this week tells a story of reduced weekly usage, and increasing storage levels due to river flows and pumping to our storage dams."

According to the report the average daily water consumption per person is 123 litres per person - 27 litres below the level 5 target of 150 litres.

Thanks to the recent rainfall the town water storage is up and is now at 41 percent .

Although it says heavy storms increase the level of contaminants flowing in our rivers.

"So we can keep water quality high, we have to wait until these levels settle before we pump water from the Macdonald River to our storage dams," said Ms Modderno.

"For example, it took three days after the last storm for the river water to return to an acceptable quality.

"On behalf of Walcha Council we want to thank our community for their efforts to reduce water usage.

We hope that publishing our tracker each week will further contribute to efficient use of our most precious resource."

Walcha continues to welcome rainfall across the local and regional areas, with more falls expected to arrive by the end of this week.

Walcha Mayor, Eric Noakes said the increased level of pasture growth has contributed to a more buoyant feeling around town - increasing the hope that this drought will eventually break.

"However, no matter what the conditions are regarding rain forecasts and storage levels, we must continue to strive to use our water wisely and efficiently," he said.

"Your council is progressing with securing our water future and it remains our top priority. We remain focused we have not taken our foot off the pedal regarding our water security solution - a new storage dam."

Walcha Council is currently in the process of tendering the design of a new storage dam.