CRESWICK residents could soon be washing their cars and watering their gardens, with Central Highlands Water announcing it will shortly consider whether to ease water restrictions.
Of all of the towns in the Hepburn Shire, Creswick is on the most severe level of water restrictions, at stage three.
When the Central Highlands water board meets shortly to look at easing restrictions, Creswick could be moved to stage two, stage one, or to permanent water saving rules, which restricts water use when staged water bans are not in place.
Other towns in the shire including Daylesford, on stage two restrictions, and Clunes, on stage one, could also have their water restrictions eased.
Whether the restrictions should be lifted has divided opinions.
Creswick resident and gardener David Barclay said Creswick Community Garden used tank water only and, despite the restrictions, the garden was thriving.
He believes the current restrictions should remain in place until the reservoir levels reached 60 or 70 per cent.
Central Highlands Water communications manager Wendy Stubbs said the CHW Board reviewed the water supplies, inflow and demand data each month and considered the options for each of their 15 systems.
She said usage and local inflows for winter and spring would be taken into account.
Ms Stubbs said water supplies were in a far better position than last year.
Daylesford has a capacity of 61 per cent in its reservoir, compared with 45 per cent last year.
``This would be higher however Bullarto Reservoir water levels have been reduced to undertake dam safety works due to be completed in August 2010,'' she said.
She said Clunes, which is entirely supplied by ground water, had usage at around half of the annual licence volume.
Creswick, which is on the same system as Ballarat, is the worst off in the shire with a 39 per cent capacity _ but that is still a vast improvement.
``When we went on stage four restrictions in Ballarat in 2006 we were heading down to single digits,'' Ms Stubbs said.
``Ballarat and district was on stage four for three years. We have eased out of it gradually.''
Ms Stubbs said easing restrictions did not mean they stopped saving water.
``Our communities continue to use water wisely and CHW has a number of programs, which assist our customers in saving water, including rebates on water saving products and appliances, dual-flush toilet retrofits,'' she said.
``We also work with businesses to assist them in reducing, reusing and minimising waste water.
``As water supplies improve, restrictions are reviewed.
``CHW will continue to work with our communities, including offering customers the option to use water outdoors if they wish and more flexibility in how they can use that water through easing restrictions where possible.''
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