How sensitive were water restrictions to small changes in demand / climate / land use?
Water restriction information was collated for each of the water balance areas for the 2004-05. In many cases this information was a broad overview of the water restrictions which changed several times throughout the year. The impact of the water restrictions on demand and water extraction / use was not investigated as part of this project and requires a more in-depth review over a longer time period to determine the actual impact of water restrictions on water use. Generally it is known that in times of restrictions alternate water supplies (e.g. groundwater, effluent recycling, etc) are sought when surface water restrictions are applied. This has been noted in the Murray-Darling Basin over the last 10 to 20 years where the cap has restricted surface water use and alternative sources that were not capped such as groundwater have now been extensively developed.
