SA Water said the 18.7 gigalitre reservoir near Cudlee Creek reached 100 per cent capacity today after being at just 21 per cent storage at the start of winter.

On this day last year, the reservoir was at just 61 per cent capacity, according to SA Water.

Earlier this month, SA Water opened the floodgates of Mount Bold Reservoir in Adelaide’s south for the first time in five years. Mount Bold received 30 billion litres of water since August, prompting an increase in water storage from 30 per cent to 94 per cent before the controlled water release.

At Kangaroo Creek, the influx of an estimated 15 billion litres of water from persistent spring and winter rains has seen a recently upgraded 50-metre spillway used for the first time to slowly remove water.

The spillway, which carries excess water to the River Torrens, was widened by 33-metres in 2019 as part of a $94 million safety upgrade.

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James Crocker, SA Water senior manager of wastewater expertise and environment, said this year’s rainfall had delivered “a remarkable uplift” in the reservoir’s water storage.

“It doesn’t feel like too long ago, that Kangaroo Creek was at basically zero per cent of capacity – exposing the usually hidden historic Batchelor’s Bridge – and now only a few years on, the dam’s new spillway is making its debut,” Crocker said.

“The dam’s new design for the spillway… provides it with a greater ability to safely pass extreme weather events, while elevating the dam’s safety to keep it in step with our contemporary national guidelines.

“A small amount of excess water from the reservoir is currently flowing slowly down the spillway and into the River Torrens, with the flow potentially increasing subject to rainfall later in the week and subsequent inflows.

“As much as possible, we’ve been proactively diverting water from Kangaroo Creek to be treated at our nearby Hope Valley Water Treatment Plant and supplied to our customers.”

Water flows from the new 50-metre spillway. Photo supplied SA Water

SA Water reports today that all Adelaide metropolitan reservoirs are sitting at a total capacity of 88 per cent holding a combined 175 billion litres of water, up from 173 billion litres on October 14.

“This year’s healthy rainfall has meant a number of our other reservoirs, like Mount Bold and Myponga, are also relatively full, which is benefitting the environment as water releases help support the aquatic ecosystems and native fauna which call downstream river systems home,” Crocker said.

“More natural inflows from the Mount Lofty Ranges catchment also means we’ve reduced the amount of carbon emissions that are associated with energy-intensive pumping of water from the River Murray.”

Kangaroo Creek dam was constructed from 1966 to 1969.