The 2000s drought in
Australia, also known as the Millennium drought is said by some to be the worst
drought
A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...
recorded since European settlement.
This drought affected most of southern Australia, including its largest cities and largest agricultural region (the
Murray–Darling basin
The Murray–Darling basin is a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia, encompassing the drainage basin of the tributaries of the Murray River, Australia's longest river, and the Darling River, a right tributary of ...
). It commenced with low rainfall conditions in late 1996 and through 1997, and worsened through particularly dry years in 2001 and 2002. By 2003 it was recognised as the worst drought on record.
The year 2006 was the driest on record for many parts of the country and conditions remained hot and dry through to early 2010. The emergence of
La Niña
La Niña (; ) is an oceanic and atmospheric phenomenon that is the colder counterpart of as part of the broader El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate pattern. The name ''La Niña'' originates from Spanish for "the girl", by an ...
weather conditions in 2010 rapidly ended the drought, and led to floods in some locations, particularly in central and southern
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
.
The drought placed extreme pressure on agricultural production and urban water supply in much of southern Australia. It has led to the construction of six major
seawater desalination plants to provide water to Australia's major cities, and to changes in the management of water in the Murray–Darling basin, particularly the formation of the
Murray–Darling Basin Authority
The Murray–Darling Basin Authority (MDBA) is the principal government agency in charge of managing the Murray–Darling basin in an integrated and sustainable manner. The MDBA is an independent statutory agency that manages, in conjunction w ...
.
Prelude to drought
Beginning in the second half of 1991, a very severe drought occurred throughout
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
which intensified in 1994 and 1995 to become the worst on record.
By October 1994, part of the upper
Darling River
The Darling River (Paakantyi: ''Baaka'' or ''Barka'') is the third-longest river in Australia, measuring from its source in northern New South Wales to its conflu
ence with the Murray River at Wentworth, New South Wales. Including its long ...
system had collapsed and the
Condamine River
The Condamine River, part of the Balonne River, Balonne catchment that is part of the Murray-Darling Basin, drains the northern portion of the Darling Downs, an area of sub-coastal southern Queensland, Australia. The river is approximately 500 k ...
had reverted to a series of ponds. Across the state 40% of Queensland was drought declared.
[Collie, Gordon. ''Dry tears of despair''. ]The Courier-Mail
''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner northe ...
. p. 29. 22 October 1994. From July to August 1995 the drought was further influenced by a strong
El Niño
El Niño (; ; ) is the warm phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and is associated with a band of warm ocean water that develops in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific (approximately between the International Date ...
weather pattern associated with high temperatures. According to Primary Industries Minister, Ed Casey, "the drought affected region stretched in a 200 km to 300 km wide strip from
Stanthorpe
Stanthorpe is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Stanthorpe had a population of 5,406 people.
The area surrounding the town is known as the Granite Belt.
Geography
Stanthorpe lies on the New ...
to
Charters Towers
Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits unde ...
".
[Collie, Gordon. ''Water crisis threatens towns''. ]The Courier Mail
''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner northern ...
p. 3. 3 June 1995 So few wheat and
barley
Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...
crops survived, about half the usual for that year, that grains had to be imported from other states.
Geographic and seasonal characteristics, and compounding factors
The
Bureau of Meteorology
The Bureau of Meteorology (BOM or BoM) is an executive agency of the Australian Government responsible for providing weather services to Australia and surrounding areas. It was established in 1906 under the Meteorology Act, and brought together ...
has characterised the Millennium Drought as primarily affecting:
* Southern Australia (rainfall in northern Australia was above average during the same period).
* Cool season (April to October) rainfall, other than for Tasmania where rainfall was well below historical averages in both warm and cool seasons.
Although the period of the Millennium Drought was characterised by several
El Niño
El Niño (; ; ) is the warm phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and is associated with a band of warm ocean water that develops in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific (approximately between the International Date ...
weather patterns, which affect the entire southern Pacific region and typically bring hot and dry conditions to eastern Australia, it cannot be explained purely by natural variability. The Bureau of Meteorology concluded that
climate change
In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
exacerbated the extent and severity of the drought.
The effects of the drought on water availability was compounded by historically high temperatures over the same period. The Bureau of Meteorology's head of climate analysis, David Jones, released statistics showing that in 2007 South Australia, NSW, Victoria, the ACT and the
Murray–Darling basin
The Murray–Darling basin is a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia, encompassing the drainage basin of the tributaries of the Murray River, Australia's longest river, and the Darling River, a right tributary of ...
all set temperature records by a very large margin. 2007 was the eleventh year in a row that the Murray–Darling basin had experienced above average temperatures and was (at that time) Australia's sixth-warmest year on record. Jones warned that "There is absolutely no debate that Australia is warming... it may be time to stop describing south-eastern Australia as gripped by drought and instead accept the extreme dry as permanent."
Timeline
1996 to 2000: patchy rainfall in the south-east
Dry conditions began to emerge in south-eastern Australia during late 1996 and accentuated during the strong 1997 El Niño event. Rainfall in 1998, 1999 and 2000 was closer to average, with isolated areas affected by rainfall well below average.
2001 to 2005: El Niño brings on strong drought conditions
![2002decileanomaly_-_new](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/2002decileanomaly_-_new.gif)
According to the Bureau of Meteorology, much of eastern Australia experienced a dry 2001. 2002 was one of Australia's driest and warmest years on record, with 'remarkably widespread' dry conditions, particularly in the eastern half of the country which was again affected by El Niño conditions. It was, at the time, Australia's fourth-driest year since 1900.
The El Niño weather pattern broke down during 2003 but occasional strong rainfall in 2003 and 2004 failed to alleviate the cumulative effect of persistently low rainfall in south-eastern Australia, with some measurement stations having recorded below average rainfall for eight consecutive years. Rainfall in early 2005 remained below average, and better rainfall in the second half of the year again failed to break continuing drought conditions in the south-east.
2006 and 2007: extreme dry and hot conditions in the Murray–Darling basin
![2006decileanomaly_-_new](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9d/2006decileanomaly_-_new.gif)
South-east Australia experienced its second-driest year on record in 2006, particularly affecting the major agricultural region of the
Murray–Darling basin
The Murray–Darling basin is a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia, encompassing the drainage basin of the tributaries of the Murray River, Australia's longest river, and the Darling River, a right tributary of ...
. Despite slightly above normal summer/autumn rainfall, the late-winter to mid-spring rainfalls failed, resulting in the 2006 annual rainfall being 40 to 60% below normal over most of southern Australia. The average rainfall in the state of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
was the lowest since 1900 with only of rain recorded compared to the normal winter/spring average of . Across Victoria and the Murray–Darling Basin the season was the second-driest since 1900. While New South Wales' rainfall was boosted by above normal falls along the
north coast of the state, the state's average rainfall for the season was the third lowest since 1900. The situation was exacerbated by temperatures being the highest on record since the 1950s.
In early 2007, senior weather forecasters predicted that the drought would ease along the east coast with a return to average rainfall from late February 2007. Forecasters believed that the El Niño effect that had been driving the drought since 2006 had ended.
However, this did not turn out to be correct as 2007 saw record temperatures across the south of Australia, and only patchy rain. Promising early year rains transitioned into a very dry July–October period. Heavy rainfall in June and July, particularly in coastal regions of New South Wales and in Victoria's
Gippsland
Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It cove ...
region, together with tentative forecasts of a
La Niña
La Niña (; ) is an oceanic and atmospheric phenomenon that is the colder counterpart of as part of the broader El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate pattern. The name ''La Niña'' originates from Spanish for "the girl", by an ...
event, brought hope that the drought may have ended. In August 2007, the
Darling River
The Darling River (Paakantyi: ''Baaka'' or ''Barka'') is the third-longest river in Australia, measuring from its source in northern New South Wales to its conflu
ence with the Murray River at Wentworth, New South Wales. Including its long ...
flowed again after nearly a year of no flows; however, the Murray-Darling Basin experienced their seventh consecutive year of below-average rain and inflows into the Basin during the winter of 2007 were still amongst the lowest on record, though marginally better than those of the winter of 2006 which had been the driest on record.
At the end of 2007 the Bureau of Meteorology estimated that south-eastern Australia had missed the equivalent of a full year's rain in the previous 11 years.
2008 and 2009: continuing hot and dry conditions
2008 and 2009 saw continuing hot and dry conditions in south-eastern Australia, with occasional heavy rainfall failing to break the continuing drought. The effects of the drought were exacerbated by Australia's (then) second-hottest year on record in 2009, with record-breaking heatwaves in January, February and the second half of the year.
The drought in Sydney eased around April 2008 and Sydney's main water catchments reached 65 percent, 25 per cent fuller than they were at the same time the previous year.
However, Victoria remained drought affected, with Melbourne's water supplies dipping to around 30% by July 2008. In
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
drought conditions worsened in 2008, with many areas reporting no significant rainfall for three years.
2010 and 2011: La Niña finally breaks the drought
Australia's weather pattern transitioned rapidly to a wet La Niña pattern during the autumn of 2010, resulting in record-breaking rains in the Murray-Darling basin and well above average rainfall across the south-east. For many locations this was the first year of above-average rainfall since 1996. The rainfall dramatically increased surface water storage and soil moisture, effectively ending the drought in the south-east.
While 70% of New South Wales was in drought at the beginning of 2010, the entire state was officially out of drought by December. The entire state experienced its wettest spring on record. Several rivers, including rivers in the outback had flooded several times, and many dams were overflowing, including the
Burrendong,
Burrinjuck and
Pindari
The Pindaris were irregular military plunderers and foragers in 17th- through early 19th-century Indian subcontinent who accompanied initially the Mughal army, later the Maratha army, and finally on their own before being eliminated in the 1817â ...
Dams. Canberra's dams were above 90% capacity.
The
2010 Victorian storms in March did little to help Melbourne's storage levels, but steady winter rains, and the
2010 Victorian floods
The 2010 Victorian floods were a widespread series of flood events across the state of Victoria, Australia. The floods, which followed heavy rain across southeastern Australia in early September 2010, caused the inundation of about 250 homes, h ...
in September, rapidly increased storage levels. Melbourne also recorded its average annual rainfall in 2010 for the first time since 1996, and its wettest spring since 1993. By 2011, Victoria was drought free for the first time in almost 15 years and was instead gripped by very wet conditions and
severe flooding.
Queensland experienced heavy storms in December 2010 and January 2011, resulting in
widespread flooding.
Despite Western Australia experiencing its fifth-wettest spring on record, drought in the South West, Gascoyne and Pilbara regions of Western Australia's intensified in 2010, with the regions experiencing their driest year on record. Perth's dams registered their lowest inflows on record with the city itself recording its third-driest year on record, along with the hottest spring on record.
In South Australia, only two regions in the Riverland remained in drought. Heavy rains elsewhere led to bumper harvests over much of the state, this in turn led to the largest mouse plague since 1993 across parts of South Australia, West Australia and Victoria. While some farmers tried to replant, in some areas many gave up as millions of mice covered their fields. Farmers often characterised the plague as being worse than the drought.
Effects of the drought
Agriculture
Agricultural production was severely affected. Australia's cotton production had dropped, with the smallest area planted in 20 years, a 66% reduction compared to five years earlier which was considered a "normal" year. The crop had been half its usual size for three of the previous five years.
Water use by the industry fell by 37% between 2000/01 and 2004/05, due mainly to the drought. On the order of 20 cotton communities and 10,000 people directly employed by the cotton industry were impacted by the drought. The main areas affected were in New South Wales:
Menindee
Menindee (frequently but erroneously spelled "Menindie"
) is a small town in the far west of New South Wales, Australia, in Central Darling Shire, on the banks of the Darling River, with a sign-posted population of 980 and a population of 551. ...
where the area under production was reduced by 100%,
Bourke had reduced the area under production by 99%,
Walgett
Walgett is a town in northern New South Wales, Australia, and the seat of Walgett Shire. It is near the junctions of the Barwon and Namoi Rivers and the Kamilaroi and Castlereagh Highways. In 2016, Walgett had a population of 2,145.
In the 2 ...
has reduced the area under production by 95%, the
Macquarie River
The Macquarie River - Wambuul is part of the Macquarie– Barwon catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is one of the main inland rivers in New South Wales, Australia.
The river rises in the central highlands of New South Wales near the ...
has reduced the area under production by 74% and the
Gwydir River
Gwydir River (locally wɑe̯də, a major inland perennial river of the Barwon catchment within the Murray–Darling basin, is located in the Northern Tablelands, North West Slopes, and Orana districts of New South Wales, Australia.
Th ...
had reduced the area under production by 60%. In Queensland the worst-affected areas were
Biloela
Biloela ( ) is a rural town and locality in Shire of Banana, Central Queensland, Australia. It is situated inland from the port city of Gladstone at the junction of the Burnett and Dawson highways. Biloela is the administrative centre of Ban ...
which reduced the area under production by 100%, at
Dirranbandi
Dirranbandi is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Balonne, Queensland, Australia. The locality is on the border of Queensland with New South Wales. In the , Dirranbandi had a population of 640 people.
Geography
Dirranbandi is on the ...
there was a 91% reduction,
Central Highlands had reduced the area under production by 82% and
Darling Downs
The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was general ...
had reduced the area under production by 78%. Bourke had adequate water for only one cotton crop from 2001 to 2006. Stock feed was also becoming scarce and farmers were finding it difficult to feed cattle and sheep. Dairy producers were hit particularly hard by the drought with 2004 a particularly bleak year in the sector, as a drought-caused drop in production sent revenue in the industry down by 4.5%.
Environment
In June 2008 it became known that an expert panel had warned of long term, maybe irreversible, severe ecological damage for the whole
Murray-Darling basin if it did not receive sufficient water by October of that year.
The very low flow to the Lower
River Murray
The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...
in South Australia (over Lock 1) resulted in the lowest water levels in over 90 years of records.
The lowest water levels during the extreme low flow period were reached in April 2009 and represented a 64% and 73% reduction in the volume of
Lakes Alexandrina and
Albert
Albert may refer to:
Companies
* Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic
* Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands
* Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia
* Albert Productions, a record label
* Alber ...
respectively. The low water levels and inflows meant there was no outflow from the lake system during the extreme low flow period. During this period the lake levels fell below mean sea level (approximately +0.2 m AHD) downstream of the barrages, reversing the usual positive hydraulic gradient from the lake to the sea. The seawater intrusion, lack of flushing, evapoconcentration and increased resuspension resulted in severe water quality impacts
Exposure and oxidation of
acid sulfate soils due to falling water levels from 2007–2009 in the Lower River Murray and Lower Lakes also resulted in acidification of soils, lake and ground water.
[Mosley LM, Palmer D, Leyden E, Fitzpatrick R, and Shand P (2014). Changes in acidity and metal geochemistry in soils, groundwater, drain and river water in the Lower Murray River after a severe drought. Science of the Total Environment 485–486: 281–291.] Large scale engineering interventions were undertaken to prevent further acidification, including construction of a bund and pumping of water to prevent exposure and acidification of Lake Albert. Management of acidification in the Lower Lakes was also undertaken using aerial limestone dosing.
Ironically, the easing of the drought led to a large blackwater (low dissolved oxygen) event across a large area of the River Murray during high flows in 2011. Organic carbon (dead plant material) that had been retained in the landscape during the drought was mobilised into the river system and the breakdown of this consumed dissolved oxygen.
The environmental legacy of the drought persists in parts of the system. For example, as of 2014 Lake Albert salinity was still elevated four years after the drought, and acidity persists in soils and groundwater.
Urban water
Australia had previously relied solely on water from dams for agriculture and consumption. The drought changed the way Australia treated its
water resources. Because of the long-term effects of the drought now showing, many
state
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
governments attempted to "drought-proof" their states with more permanent solutions such as
grey-water water-recycling, government
rebates for home-owners to install
water tank
A water tank is a container for storing water.
Water tanks are used to provide storage of water for use in many applications, drinking water, irrigation agriculture, fire suppression, agricultural farming, both for plants and livestock, chemi ...
s, and tougher restrictions on industries.
The citizens of
Toowoomba
Toowoomba ( , nicknamed 'The Garden City' and 'T-Bar') is a city in the Toowoomba Region of the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia. It is west of Queensland's capital city Brisbane by road. The urban population of Toowoomba as of the 2021 ...
voted on, and rejected, a
referendum
A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
on using recycled
sewage water. As a result, no recycled sewage was added to Toowoomba's drinking supply.
Most Australian mainland capital cities faced a major water crisis with less than 50% of water storages remaining.
Sydney
Plans for a desalination project in Sydney were temporarily halted in 2005 after public opposition and the discovery of new underground
aquifer
An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing, permeable rock, rock fractures, or unconsolidated materials ( gravel, sand, or silt). Groundwater from aquifers can be extracted using a water well. Aquifers vary greatly in their characteris ...
s. By late 2006, however, with Sydney's water storages plunging to their lowest levels since the 1950s – around 33% of capacity – the authorities decided to reinstate the project. A$1.8 billion desalination plant was then constructed at Kurnell, in southern Sydney, opening in the summer of 2009–10.
The drought in Sydney eased around April 2008 and Sydney's main water catchments reached 65 percent, 25 per cent fuller than they were at the same time the previous year.
Melbourne
Melbourne had rain up to 90% below the average for September and October 2006, compounding the problem of extremely low rainfall from the preceding winter months. Melbourne had also experienced high temperatures throughout October causing increased
evaporation of water in dams and reservoirs, which resulted in their levels falling by around 0.1% a day. As a result of all these factors
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
was put on tight
water restriction
An outdoor water-use restriction is a Ban (law), ban or other lesser Regulation, restrictions put into effect that restricts the outdoor use of Water supply, water supplies. Often called a watering ban or hosepipe ban, it can affect:
*irrigation o ...
s and as of July 2009, water levels in its dams were at a mere 27% of capacity.
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
had had
Stage 3a water restrictions from 1 April 2007, and narrowly avoided Stage 4 restrictions, with the minimum storage level of around 25.8% remaining above the threshold of 25% for enacting Stage 4. This led to the construction of the
North-South Pipeline
''North-South'' ( hy, Õ€ÕµÕ¸Ö‚Õ½Õ«Õ½-Õ€Õ¡Ö€Õ¡Õ¾) or ''Four Buddies and the Bride'' is an Armenian comedy directed by Davit Babakhanyan and Vazgen Muradyan, starring Diana Malenko, Sona Shahgeldyan and David Tovmasyan. The film was produced by L ...
which would divert water out of the
Goulburn River
The Goulburn River, a major inland perennial river of the Goulburn Broken catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the alpine, Northern Country/North Central, and Southern Riverina regions of the Australian state of Victor ...
and supply it to Melbourne to meet water demands. Many towns in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
were close to running out of water, with some of the few Victorian towns without
water restrictions being in the
East Gippsland
East Gippsland is the eastern region of Gippsland, Victoria, Australia covering 31,740 square kilometres (14%) of Victoria. It has a population of 80,114.
Australian Bureau of Statistics2006 Census Community Profile Series: East Gippsland (St ...
water area, where reservoir levels were above 80%.
The Victorian Government also began building a $3.1 Billion 150Gl (
gigalitre
The litre (international spelling) or liter (American English spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: â„“) is a metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3) or 0.001 cubic metre (m3) ...
) desalination plant, one of the world's largest. When completed in 2011, it would be capable of supplying up to a third of Melbourne's water needs.
The
2010 Victorian storms in March did little to help Melbourne's storage levels, but steady winter rains, and the
2010 Victorian floods
The 2010 Victorian floods were a widespread series of flood events across the state of Victoria, Australia. The floods, which followed heavy rain across southeastern Australia in early September 2010, caused the inundation of about 250 homes, h ...
in September, rapidly increased storage levels. 2010 saw Australia officially record its wettest spring on record due to a moderate to strong La Nina developing over the region. Water restrictions were reduced to stage 3 on 2 April, and stage 2 on 1 September.
Brisbane
![Brisbane_dam_levels_during_drought_2000-2007](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Brisbane_dam_levels_during_drought_2000-2007.png)
Brisbane water levels reduced to under 20% of capacity, having had no substantial inflow for five years.
Brisbane organised to be supplied via larger dams, a pipeline and possibly also recycling. The
Gold Coast Desalination Plant was constructed at
Bilinga, delivering water from 2009.
The drought in Queensland had mostly eased with
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...
recording very heavy rain in May 2009, and premier
Anna Bligh announcing that
South East Queensland
South East Queensland (SEQ) is a bio-geographical, metropolitan, political and administrative region of the state of Queensland in Australia, with a population of approximately 3.8 million people out of the state's population of 5.1 million. Th ...
was no longer experiencing drought. Brisbane's dams were now at full capacity with the state in general experiencing its wettest spring on record. The end of the drought and heavy spring rains in Queensland culminated with devastating floods in December 2010 and
January 2011.
Perth
In November 2006
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
completed a seawater
desalination plant that will supply the city with 17% of its needs.
In 2010 Perth's dams registered their lowest inflows on record with the city itself recording its third-driest year on record, along with the hottest spring on record.
Adelaide
![Port Stanvac Desalination Plant P1000725](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6b/Port_Stanvac_Desalination_Plant_P1000725.jpg)
In South Australia work on a small pilot desalination plant at
Port Stanvac
Port Stanvac is a former port and oil refinery in the suburb of Lonsdale south of Adelaide city centre in South Australia. It was operated by ExxonMobil between 1963 and 2003. Since its closure, the port and adjoining land-based refinery site ...
, costing $10 million and with a capacity of 100,000 litres per day, commenced in January 2008,
[Work begins on pilot desal plant](_blank)
Jeremy Roberts, ''The Australian'', 21 January 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2011. and was completed on 4 August 2008. In 2007 the Federal Government pledged to contribute funds and construction began on a $1.1 Billion 50Gl (
gigalitre
The litre (international spelling) or liter (American English spelling) (SI symbols L and l, other symbol used: â„“) is a metric unit of volume. It is equal to 1 cubic decimetre (dm3), 1000 cubic centimetres (cm3) or 0.001 cubic metre (m3) ...
s) desalination plant.
In June 2009 the South Australian Government announced that the plant's annual output was to be doubled from 50Gl to 100Gl, approximately 270Ml (
megalitres) per day, providing up to 50% of Adelaide's domestic water supply.
100Gl desalination expansion in Public Works today
'' Department of Premier & Cabinet, News release 9 June 2009. Retrieved 25 August 2011.
Electricity supply
The drought had a material impact on Australia's
National Electricity Market
The National Electricity Market (NEM) is an arrangement in Australia's electricity sector for the connection of the electricity transmission grids of the eastern and southern Australia states and territories to create a cross-state wholesale el ...
, particularly during autumn and winter 2007. It reduced output from major hydro-electric generators
Snowy Hydro
Snowy Hydro Limited is an electricity generation and retailing company in Australia that owns, manages, and maintains the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme which consists of nine hydro-electric power stations and sixteen large dams connecte ...
and
Hydro Tasmania
Hydro Tasmania, known for most of its history as the Hydro-Electric Commission (HEC) or The Hydro, is the trading name of the Hydro-Electric Corporation, a Tasmanian Government business enterprise which is the predominant electricity generator i ...
, and also constrained output from some coal-fired generators that use fresh water for cooling.
The Australian Energy Regulator found that these effects led to noticeably higher prices from around March 2007, but that these effects had largely eased by September.
Policy responses
National Plan for Water Security
Then Prime Minister
John Howard
John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
responded to extreme weather conditions to announce a major water policy reform agenda in January 2007, known as the National Plan for Water Security.
This led to the passage of the ''Water Act (2007)'' by the Commonwealth Parliament, the formation of the
Murray-Darling Basin Authority in 2008 and the publication of the Murray-Darling Basin Plan under the
Gillard Government in 2012.
Drought assistance
On 27 April 2012, Agriculture Minister
Joe Ludwig
Joseph William Ludwig (born 21 July 1959) is an Australian barrister and retired politician. He was a member of the Australian Senate for the state of Queensland from July 1999 to May 2016, representing the Australian Labor Party. Ludwig serve ...
stated that the two final areas in Australia receiving federal 'exceptional circumstances' drought support,
Bundarra and
Eurobodalla in
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, would cease being eligible the following week.
The Federal Government had provided $4.5 billion in drought assistance since 2001.
The related move to end the exceptional circumstances interest rate subsidy program was criticised as premature by the NSW Farmers Association and
National Farmers' Federation
The National Farmers' Federation (NFF) is an Australian non-profit membershipbased organization that represents farmers and the agricultural sector in Australia. Historically, NFF was a key player in a number of industrial relations disputes, inc ...
.
Research has shown the failure of crops and the financial problems this brings about can lead to increased stress and even suicides in some cases. To counter this rural Victoria invested in improving their mental health services during the drought period of 2001 to 2007. This played a major role in reducing the number of drought related suicides during this period.
See also
*
Drought in Australia
Drought in Australia is defined by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology as rainfall over a three-month period being in the lowest decile of what has been recorded for that region in the past. This definition takes into account that drought is a ...
*
Climate change in Australia
Climate change in Australia has been a critical issue since the beginning of the 21st century. Australia is becoming hotter and more prone to extreme heat, bushfires, droughts, floods, and longer fire seasons because of climate change. Since t ...
References
{{Heat wave
Droughts in Australia
2000s natural disasters
1990s natural disasters
2000s droughts
1990s droughts
2000s disasters in Australia
Climate change in Australia
1996 disasters in Australia
2000 disasters in Australia
2005 disasters in Australia