National Overview
Urban water
Six of the regions reported in the National Water Account (Adelaide, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth, South East Queensland and Sydney) are predominantly urban and cover the major metropolitan areas of Australia. In 2013–14, water supplied to urban systems in these six regions accounted for 80% of urban water supply across all the reported regions.
For all regions, except Adelaide, the supply of water to urban water systems increased relative to the previous year. This increase is consistent with a shift to generally drier conditions in most urban regions in 2013–14, but would also be influenced by increases in urban population and commercial and industrial use.
Mix of water sources in the region's urban centres and total volume for the years ending 30 June 2012, 2013 and 2014
Supply to the Canberra, Melbourne, South East Queensland and Sydney urban water systems is almost entirely from surface water. The Perth and Adelaide regions rely on more diverse sources of water. Low surface water availability at the start of 2013–14 in these two regions is reflected in greater use of other water sources.
All urban regions, except Canberra, can produce desalinated water to meet approximately 20–60% of current urban demand. In 2013–14, Adelaide and Perth relied on desalinated water for almost 40% of urban supply, both increasing from 2012–13. In comparison, good surface water availability in Melbourne, South East Queensland and Sydney meant little or no desalinated water was produced in these regions.