The project is funded by the Australian Government ($2,300,000). Australian Government funding is provided through the National Water Grid Fund.
This project aims to develop new state-wide rainfall-runoff-recharge relationships that incorporate the impacts of climate change.
Project overview
The current rainfall-runoff-recharge relationships for parts of South Australia were established in the late 1990s. This relationship was only calculated for the Mount Lofty Ranges’ surface water catchments even though, with some adjustments, it was applied to similar catchments in other parts of the state.
This project aims to develop new state-wide rainfall-runoff-recharge relationships that incorporate the impacts of climate change (particularly since the onset of Millennium drought) on this relationship across the state.
South Australia experiences a highly variable climate and rainfall across the state. Updating the rainfall-runoff-recharge relationships will provide data and information that underpins the development and/or amendment of existing water management policies across the water sector in South Australia.
The data and information outputs will also support future infrastructure planning and development, as well as water allocation plans that set policies and rules for take of water for stock, domestic, irrigation, industrial, cultural and environmental requirements.
A better understanding of this relationship will also ensure a greater level of protection for the state’s groundwater-dependent ecosystems.
The South Australian Department of Environment and Water is also contributing $750,000 through in-kind contributions*.
*In-kind contributions are contributions of goods and services and do not contribute to the total project cost.