On the back of the Bureau of Meteorology declaring an El Niño, Townsville residents are being urged to consider their water use as the city consumes more than 1,890 backyard pools worth of water every day.
The declaration of El Niño conditions has forecasted a hot, dry run up to a possible wet season for Townsville.
Mayor Jenny Hill has urged the community to start conserving and reducing its water consumption where possible.
“The usual trend we see is water use dramatically increases as the temperature rises and less rain falls in our region,” Cr Hill said.
“Townsville’s current average water consumption is 600 litres per person per day which is more than double the Australian average.
“Water is a finite resource, and we are encouraging the community to responsibly use water around their homes all year.
“Simple things around the home like taking the one-song shower challenge, reducing the time spent watering lawns and gardens and fixing any leaks will all have a huge impact on lowering the city’s water use.”
Cr Hill said reducing water consumption would also help in treating blue-green algae.
“Due to our tropical climate, we are already experiencing naturally occurring blue-green algae in our dam and this is expected to continue over the coming months.
“We are asking the community to help us out and think about how they use water in their homes and businesses and how they can reduce their water use.
“The community can assist by minimising outdoor water use which, when we all pitch in, can generate substantial water savings.”
Water and Resource Recovery Committee chairperson Russ Cook said Council was already looking at ways it could reduce its water use across the city.
“We continue to prioritise fixing water leaks in our network and we’re encouraging the community to report any leaks they see to Council,” Cr Cook said.
“We’ve replaced thousands of water-intensive trees with native ones that use less water to maintain.
“Council continues to optimise the time it spends watering our parks and open spaces to achieve efficient use of water.
“Townsville locals have a great track record of reducing their water consumption when it’s needed and we are encouraging them to do the same now to ensure our water treatment infrastructure can continue to produce safe water for our city.”
