RECENT rainfall has resulted in a surge in capacity at one of the region's dams.
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Chaffey Dam - currently the chief water supply for Tamworth - received 102 megalitres of inflow on Sunday which saw its storage level rise to 13.8 per cent.
While it is still at a relatively low level and it will take much more rain before any water restrictions are eased, it is a positive turnaround for the dam.
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Chaffey's storage level has risen by about 1 per cent in the last week.
The dam dipped as low 12.85 per cent on Thursday.
Chaffey Dam started the year at 13.8 per cent capacity.
The rise might continue over the coming days with local noting flows returning to the Peel and Cockburn rivers following the festival downpours.
The latest water availability report from Water NSW said about 30 megalitres was being released from the dam per day.
This January has already been wetter than average at the Tamworth airport with 97.4mm recorded so far.
The first month of the year brings 66.2mm to Tamworth on average.
However, this year is on track to be Tamworth's hottest January on record with the month's top temperatures 3.3 warmer than average.
Elsewhere, Copeton Dam surged to 6.6 per cent capacity on Sunday thanks to the wet weather over the weekend.
Water NSW recorded 1107 megalitres of inflow into the dam with 6mm of rain recorded on Sunday.
The flows weren't as generous for Keepit or Split Rock dams.
Only 17 megalitres flowed in Keepit, while Split Rock posted a loss of 13 megalitres.
Keepit, which sits on the Namoi River, is at 0.9 per cent capacity and it could be bolstered by flows returning to the river in Manilla.
The Macdonald River - which runs into the Namoi - has also begun flowing again.
Armidale's main supply, Malpas Dam, also registered a rise with its capacity now sitting at 35.6 per cent.
Armidale Regional Council has been encouraging its residents to use less than 160 litres of water per day under its level 5 restrictions.
The community has 398 days worth of supply, according to the council's website.