Overview
Summary
Where does my water come from?
What is the quality of my water?
Water Quality Data
Water Quantity Data
Literature Review
Catchment Issues
Glossary
Frequently Asked Questions
Community Language Information
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-> Quarterly Water Quality Reports -> Fourth Quarter 2003/2004 -> Where does my water come from? Where does my water come from? |
Sydney's Water Supply System
To find out which system supplies water to your property and your water quality results, enter your postcode and click go.
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For information on water quality at various stages of the Water Supply System, click on any of the symbols.
Catchments
Dams
Water
Filtration Plants
Customer
Supply Systems
LEGEND
A "catchment" is an area of land where, when it rains, water can run in from a creek or stream leading to one of the major water supply dams. There are over 16,500 square kilometres of "catchment area" in Sydney's water system. We sample many of the rivers and streams (inflows) that carry water into the storages from the catchments.
There are seven major dams storing Sydney's water. There are also secondary storage dams which hold water, which is available for transfer to the major dams. Water storage dams hold large amounts of water for use over time, particularly in dry conditions. The dams also allow time for many of the "contaminants" which are held in the water as it runs through the catchments, to settle out.
On leaving the dams, the water passes to one of the 10 Water Filtration Plants around the Sydney Water network. The filtration plants are designed to further boost the quality by removing identified contaminants which are set down in each plant's performance targets. These are to ensure the water meets quality and health guidelines.
From the Filtration Plant water enters a complex series of pipes and reservoirs for delivery to homes and businesses. Each Filtration Plant may supply one or more customer supply systems. The Prospect Water Filtration Plant, the largest and most complex, supplies water to around 80 per cent of Sydney.