National Water Account 2019

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Key findings

Climate and water

Water Accounting Statements

Supporting information

Region description

Reference information

Adelaide: Geographic Information

General description

Area: 5,350 km²
Population: 1.3 million (Australian Bureau of Statistics [ABS] 2016)

Figure R1 Contextual map of the Adelaide region

• The Adelaide region is located in the southeast of South Australia, extending from the Barossa Valley in the north to the Fleurieu Peninsula in the south.
• The region is physically defined by the Gawler, Torrens, Onkaparinga, Myponga river and Flurieu Peninsula catchments.
• The region has an extensive network of water bodies and accounts for 1.9% of Australia's water use.

Land use

Figure R2 Land use in the Adelaide region

• The Adelaide metropolitan area (including Gawler) is the major population centre in the region with 1.3 million residents and makes up 16% of the region's land use.
• Key agricultural industries (grazing, dryland, and irrigated agriculture) including wine production, beef and dairy cattle, vegetable growing, and fruit orchards occupy over half of the region.
• Conservation and natural environments make up 13% of the region's land use.

Significant aquatic ecosystems

Figure R3 Significant wetlands in the Adelaide region

• There are 14 nationally important wetlands listed in the Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia within the region.
• The region also contains The Coorong and Lakes Alexandrina and Albert Wetland, which is Ramsar listed.

Water resources

• Most of the region's water supply comes from surface water, including inter-region transfers from the River Murray, which is mainly used for urban supply.
• Groundwater resources and recycled water are used mainly to support agriculture in the region.
• The Adelaide Desalination Plant provides an alternative climate resilient water source for urban supply in the region (see the Desalinated water section for more information).

Surface water

Storages

Figure R4 Major storages in the Adelaide region; capacity of each storage is also shown

• Surface water storages are an important source for water supply in the region, mainly for urban water supply.
• The region's key surface water storages are connected to supply pipelines that access water from the River Murray.
• Further information on the Adelaide region's storages, including current levels and volumes for reservoirs, is given on the Bureau of Meteorology's Water storage website.

Rivers

• Primary rivers in the Adelaide region include the North Para, Onkaparinga, and Myponga rivers.

Figure R5 Selected flow gauging stations on the North Para, Onkaparinga and Myponga rivers within the Adelaide region

Figure R6 Mean monthly flows along the North Para, Onkaparinga and Myponga rivers and mean monthly rainfall for the Adelaide region

• The seasonal flow characteristics of rivers within the region reflect the region's annual rainfall pattern, where most rainfall occurs between June and October.
• The perennial flow characteristics of the Onkaparinga river contrast to those of the North Para and Myponga rivers, which may occasionally cease to flow during the summer months.

Groundwater

• Groundwater is an important water resource in the Adelaide region for both irrigation and stock and domestic supply.
• The location of each groundwater management area in the Adelaide region is shown in Figure R10 in 'Water management'.
• An example subsection of the Northern Adelaide Plains aquifers is shown below.

Figure R7 Groundwater system within the Adelaide region

• Groundwater generally flows west from the higher rainfall recharge areas in the Western Mount Lofty Ranges towards the St Vincent Basin (Stewart, Banks and Wilson 2009).
• Lateral inflow is the main mechanism for recharge of the coastal aquifers.

Desalinated water

• The Adelaide Desalination Plant, located at Port Stanvac (see Figure R8 below), treats sea water taken from the Gulf St Vincent, providing an additional, climate-independent water source. Desalinated water is mixed with water treated at the Happy Valley Water Treatment Plant before entering the Happy Valley distribution network and the North South Interconnection System.
• The Adelaide Desalination Plant is able to produce up to 100,000 ML/year of water, which is about half of metropolitan Adelaide's annual water demand.
• There are also more than 25 privately and publicly owned desalination plants with an individual capacity greater than 1.8 ML/year in the region. These desalination plants are typically used to improve groundwater, wastewater, and mains water quality on a small scale to a standard suitable for irrigation, industry, and medical purposes.

Recycled water

• Approximately 30% of the wastewater treated at SA Water's wastewater treatment plants is used in recycled water applications (Office for Water Security 2010) including agricultural, viticultural, municipal, parks, and recreational purposes.
• A large proportion of the recycled water is provided to Virginia Pipeline Scheme and Willunga Basin Water Company from Bolivar, Christies' Beach, and Aldinga treatment plants. Under the Aldinga Aquifer Storage and Recovery Scheme, recycled water is supplied from the Christies Beach treatment plant and injected to the Port Willunga Formation aquifer as managed aquifer recharge.

• In addition to SA Water's  wastewater treatment plants, community wastewater management schemes are another source of recycled water (refer Community Wastewater Management Schemes for further information).

Stormwater harvesting

• Stormwater harvesting (collection, treatment, and use of urban runoff) is of increasing importance to the Adelaide region and forms an integral part of the South Australian Government's water security strategy (Office for Water Security 2010).
• There are currently eight stormwater harvesting and reuse projects underway in the Adelaide region, with the collective capacity to harvest approximately 8,000 ML of stormwater annually.

Water systems

Urban water system

• The urban water system includes water treatment plants and wastewater treatment plants, pipes and tanks, owned and operated by SA Water.

Figure R8 Urban water system infrastructure within the Adelaide metropolitan area

• Urban users in the Adelaide region are also supplied by several water treatment plants outside the Adelaide metropolitan boundaries; however, these have not been included within the Account.
• More information about the Adelaide urban water system can be found at the SA Water website.

Irrigation schemes

• Three major irrigation schemes operate in the Adelaide region: Virginia Pipeline Scheme, Barossa Infrastructure Limited, and Willunga Basin Water Company.
• The Virginia Pipeline Scheme provides water to irrigators within the Virginia and Angle Vale districts in the north of the Adelaide region. Recycled water from the Bolivar Waste Water Treatment Plant is provided for the irrigation of 20 different crops, including fresh vegetables.
• Barossa Infrastructure Limited provides water to irrigators within the Barossa Valley. River Murray water is the primary water source, supplied via the Mannum–Adelaide pipeline and, if required, via the Swan Reach–Stockwell pipeline. Recycled water is also used for water supply.
• The Willunga Basin Water Company provides recycled water to irrigators within the McLaren Vale region. Recycled water from the Christies Beach wastewater treatment plant is the primary source of water, which includes water injected to groundwater as part of the Aldinga Aquifer Storage and Recovery Scheme.

Community Wastewater Management Schemes

• These schemes harvest water from household septic systems and are typically operated by local councils. They provide recycled water for irrigation of vines and recreation facilities, including that supplied to the region's irrigation schemes.

Farm dams

• Farm dams refer to landscape catchment storages used to harvest runoff, floodwater, or collected rainwater. They are an important water resource in the region; however, water held in farm dams is considered to be taken from the shared pool of water resources and, as such, is not included as part of the region's water assets.
• The Adelaide region has in excess of 15,000 farm dams holding more than 39,700 ML of water when full. On average, farm dams harvest around 10% of annual runoff, although on a seasonal basis this can be more than 70% in some catchments during the summer and autumn months. Water held in and abstracted from farm dams is used for a combination of purposes including industrial, irrigation, and stock and domestic purposes.