RAIN has finally fallen in the Chaffey Dam catchment area, causing a small rise in the water storage that supplies Tamworth.
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But authorities have warned locals must remember there are tight restrictions in place.
Showers over the weekend saw runoff flow into the Peel River above Chaffey Dam, which is Tamworth's main water supply.
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The dam was sitting at 13.7 per cent capacity last week and had risen to 14.1 per cent by Monday.
The Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) measuring station at the Head of the Peel near Nundle notched 71mm in the gauge over Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
The BoM facility at Malonga recorded 40.6mm during the same time period.
The surge in water meant inflows into the dam were still relatively low, but significantly up compared to recent weeks.
The Tamworth area remains on Level 5 water restrictions.
"While any rise in the dam level is good news, this is only a small rise and residents in a Tamworth, Moonbi and Kootingal must not become complacent when it comes to water conservation," Tamworth regional Council's director of water and waste Bruce Logan told the Leader on Monday.
Data from Water NSW shows that in the 24 hours from Friday morning to Saturday, the inflows peaked at 343 megalitres, with a noticeable spike occurring between April 4 and April 6 after the rainfall.
Despite the dam levels remaining relatively stagnant over the past few months, Water NSW is continuing to release environmental flows out of the dam.
Council has strongly criticised the releases, which the Leader understands will only be adjusted when the dam plummets to 10 per cent capacity.
"Council does not believe environmental releases should be made at this time," Mr Logan said.
"The water in Chaffey Dam should be reserved entirely for critical human needs."
Water NSW was contacted for comment but did not respond.