Level 3 Water Restrictions Introduced in the Bellingen Shire

Due to the low rainfall in the catchment areas and falling river levels Shire residents who receive a town water supply will be subject to Level 3 Water Restrictions as from Wednesday 11th September 2019.

Level 3 water restrictions are triggered when the flow in the Bellinger River reaches 23 ML/Day, and currently the flow in the Bellinger River is 18ML/Day.

A summary of Level 3 water restrictions are:

Sprinklers and soaker hoses are banned except for newly laid turf, (in that case written approval from Council is required) Hours of hand watering will be 10 minutes every second day between the hours of 4.00pm and 9.00am on alternate days, odd and even numbered dates matching house numbers. No filling of pools or washing of houses or driveways. Vehicles must be washed by bucket only.

A Water Restrictions Table outlining what is permitted in all levels of water restriction can be found on Council’s website at www.bellingen.nsw.gov.au by following the hyperlink under Notices on the home page.

In previous years when restrictions have been implemented water usage has increased. Council will be performing patrols to try and minimise this effect and hopes that everyone acts responsibly and follows the restriction rules above. Should the flows in the Bellinger drop below 5 ML/day Level 4 restrictions will need to be imposed.