Water security

In 2007, we began working with the Eyre Peninsula community as we prepared a long-term water plan for the region. The plan identified seawater desalination as the preferred future supply option to ensure a long-term, climate independent water source for approximately 35,000 people living and working in the region.

Uley South Basin is the last remaining major productive groundwater source on Eyre Peninsula, currently supplying approximately 75 per cent of the region’s drinking water. The basin refills when rain seeps through the soil and ground into the underground aquifer – a process known as groundwater recharge. Water Resource Manager, the Eyre Peninsula Landscape Board, based on modelling undertaken by the Department of Environment and Water, has identified a long-term trend of declining water levels and increasing salinity in inland supply wells in the southern groundwater basins. A number of factors including a changing climate, continued extraction and changes to the way in which the groundwater basins recharge have contributed to this issue.

A water allocation review is currently being undertaken by the Eyre Peninsula Landscape Board supported by the Department for Environment and Water. The new water allocation plan is anticipated to come into force on 1 July 2026 and SA Water’s allocated groundwater extraction limits from the Uley South Basin are expected to be significantly reduced, affecting water supply security and potentially reducing growth in the region through limited water supply to business and agriculture.

The Eyre Peninsula has a unique SA Water customer demand profile with approximately one third of water provided for residential customers, one third for primary production and one third for industry. Reduced water availability would have a significant risk of negative impacts to regional liveability conditions and commercial productivity.

The timeframe for delivery is critical, with a very real risk of irreversible damage to the Uley South Basin if current extraction rates continue beyond 2025-26. Without a desalination plant, we are unlikely to be able to supply water to Eyre Peninsula at current demand, and significant delays would likely lead to water restrictions.