In Queensland Town, Drought Inspires 8-Hr Warning On Water - Ethanol Plant Uses 25% Of Supply

JENNIFER TUNLEY got a shock when news broke that her Darling Downs town of Dalby had just eight hours' supply of water left. "We hadn't heard how drastic our water situation was until now," Mrs Tunley said. "There was a bit of panic." Dalby council's dire warning that Queensland's rich agricultural area was in danger of running dry was a stark reminder that much of Australia is gripped by drought. Inland townships have yet to receive the flooding rain that has fallen along the eastern seaboard.

''A lot of people in the big cities don't think about what's happening out in the back paddock,'' Dalby's Mayor, Ray Brown, said. ''As soon as you hit that big hill on the other side of the Great Dividing Range, it's dry. We're the head waters of the Murray-Darling system, and there's no water in the Murray-Darling.''

With the local Condamine River nearly dry and rainfall half the annual average, Dalby is relying on treated water from underground bores. But the town's desalination plant can only supply 4.5 megalitres a day. During a recent heatwave Dalby used 6 megalitres a day. Ten consecutive days of 35-plus temperatures have nearly drained the town's reservoir. As reserves rapidly dwindled, the council was preparing to ban all water use outside the home. ''We could get to the stage where they turn on the tap and there won't be any water left,'' Cr Brown said. It was not possible to cart enough water for the population of 12,000.

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Many blame the local ethanol plant for the water shortage. The biorefinery uses nearly a quarter of the town's supply of water, and during the hot spell was actually drawing 1.5 megalitres a day, rather than the 1 megalitre it is allocated. The council admits its "eight hours' supply left" warning was intended to give residents a "jolt" to remind them of the need to conserve the town's scarce supplies. It worked - in one day consumption dropped by 1.5 megalitres, enough to hold back the threat of level six restrictions.

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http://www.smh.com.au/environment/trickle-treat-in-a-town-just-eight-hours-from-running-dry-20091202-k6en.html