Reservoirs are usually the major source of fresh water for South Australia and rely heavily on rainfall and run-off in their catchment areas. These water storages are supplemented with water pumped from the River Murray particularly in drier periods.
Most reservoirs are located in the Mount Lofty Ranges catchment area and act as storage facilities for a number of water supply distribution systems to metropolitan Adelaide and beyond. SA Water manages water storage and distribution within the state and more
information about reservoirs is available from the SA Water website.
Storage capacity
There are 17 reservoirs in South Australia that at full capacity hold about 200 billion litres of water. This is a little less than one year's supply for metropolitan Adelaide. The
current storage levels of the state's reservoirs are available from SA Water.
A
comparison of the volume of water storage to ongoing water consumption over the past year for Adelaide is also available from SA Water.
The Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) also provides information about the
storage volumes and releases in the main storage locations of the Murray-Darling basin.
Delivery systems
Water is delivered to households and businesses via a network of over 25,000 kilometres of mains and pipes using a system of storage tanks to meet peak demands and to control water pressure.
To view information about the
water mains network in South Australia, visit the SA Water website.
Regional South Australia gets its water via pipelines from the River Murray, from small rural reservoirs or from local dams and ground water bores. To view information about the
main pipelines in South Australia, visit the SA Water website.