The Canberra region

The Canberra region is located in the southeast of Australia and within the Murray–Darling Basin. It covers the Australian Capital Territory and extends into New South Wales. One of the distinctive features of the region is the Lake Burley Griffin, in the centre of Canberra. The Murrumbidgee River is the main waterway joining with Cotter River, Gudgenby River, Molonglo River, and Queanbeyan River flowing through the region.

Water supply in the region is primarily sourced from storages and rivers. The major storages in the region are Bendora, Corin, Cotter, and Googong reservoirs. Recently, Cotter Reservoir was enlarged to increase its total capacity by nearly 20 times from 3,856 ML to 79,375 ML to deal with frequent, longer, and severe droughts without implementing high-level water restrictions for extended periods. As a result, total surface water storage capacity in the Canberra region has increased to 282,898 ML from 207,379 ML during the 2012–13 year.

Rainfall across the Canberra region was generally below average for the 2012–13 year. These rainfall conditions, compared to the 2011–12 year, contributed to decreased inflows into surface water storages. The volume of water held in storages decreased during the 2012–13 year by 24,840 ML. Closing net water assets in the Canberra region were 216,876 ML, compared to 241,667 ML at the end of the 2012–13 year. For more information on the region's water assets refer to Water accounting statements.

The key water account information for the Canberra region during the 2012–13 year is presented in the following table. Information on the uncertainty associated with the volumes presented in the table is provided in the relevant sections of the account.

Key water account information for the Canberra region during the 2012–13 year

Contextual information: Climate overview

	2012–13	2011–12	Long–term average
	Rainfall: 692 mm	Rainfall: 1,115 mm	Rainfall: 800 mm
	Evapotranspiration: 714 mm	Evapotranspiration: 790 mm	Evapotranspiration: 658 mm
For more detail on the Canberra climate refer to Climate overview.

Contextual information: Water overview

	Molonglo River	Cotter River	Queanbeyan River
	below mean annual flow	below mean annual flow	above mean annual flow
For more detail on streamflow in the Canberra region refer to Water overview.

Water accounting statements

		2012–13	2011–12
	Total water assets (as at 30 June)	216,876	241,667
	Total water liabilities (as at 30 June)	–	–
	Change in net water assets	(24,791)	1,060
	Closing net water assets	216,876	241,667
For more detail on water assets and water liabilities refer to Water accounting statements.

Notes: Water resources and systems

Surface water storage

		30 June 2013		30 June 2012
	Total capacity	Volume	% of capacity	Volume	% of capacity
	282,898 ML	181,290 ML	64.1%	206,139 ML	99.4% of 2012 capacity
For more detail on surface water storage in the Canberra region refer to Surface water.

Water abstractions

	Total water abstracted
	2012–13	2011–12	Recent activity
	Surface water: 49,552 ML	Surface water: 43,205 ML	Water abstraction has increased
	Groundwater: 1,020 ML	Groundwater: 770 ML
For more detail on water abstraction in the Canberra region refer to Surface water and Groundwater.

Urban water supply

	Total water supplied
	2012–13	2011–12	Recent activity
	47,838 ML	41,790 ML	Use of allocated surface water for urban water supply has increased
For more detail on the urban water system in the Canberra region refer to Urban water system.