Canberra

The volume of water stored in connected lakes and wetlands is shown in the table below.

Volume of water held in lakes located in the Canberra region

mAHD = metres above Australian Height Datum; NA = not available

Data source

ACT Government Department of Environment, Climate Change, Energy and Water: Hydstra database, maintained by Ecowise Australia Pty Ltd.

Data provider

ACT Government Department of Environment, Climate Change, Energy and Water.

Method

No storage volume or level information was available for any of the lakes or wetlands within the Canberra region. However, the capacity of these lakes and wetlands is known. Therefore, the total storage within the lakes and wetlands was estimated based on the assumption that these water bodies were full at the start and end of the reporting period.

Uncertainty

Ungraded.

Assumptions, approximations and caveats/limitations

• These lakes are used primarily for recreation, conservation and aesthetic purposes, and are not formally associated with the urban water supply system. However, water can be abstracted or released to maintain environmental flows and for small-scale irrigation.
• Water levels in Lake Ginninderra and Lake Tuggeranong are generally managed within 200 mm of full supply level throughout the year. Therefore, the estimated storage volumes of these lakes in the water account is considered to be only slightly overestimated.
• At present, abstraction from Lake Ginninderra and Lake Tuggeranong is limited to volumes that would have negligible effect on the volume of the lakes (<50 ML).
• The capacity of Lake Burley Griffin is based on survey data collected at the time of construction and fill in 1964.