FAILING water supplies have forced the Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council to suspend grading on some unsealed roads in rural parts of its area.

It takes between 30,000 and 40,000 litres of water to grade a typical one-kilometre section of road.

Bungendore and Braidwood are on Level 1 and Level 2 water restrictions respectively, with increased restrictions for Braidwood imminent as water sources dwindle and long-range weather forecasts predict no substantial rain any time in the foreseeable future.

The council, in a media release today (December 11), says it is able to source water for some road works closer to Queanbeyan, but for work more than 20-30 kilometres away water carting for grading purposes is unviable.

It says that in areas surrounding Braidwood such as Majors Creek, Krawaree, Araluen, Mongarlowe, Oallen and Nerriga, natural water sources used for maintenance grading activities, including local rivers, creeks and dams, are drying up quickly.

The lack of available water means crews are unable to properly compact a road surface when undertaking grading.

Over the past two weeks, many of the council’s graders and water tankers have been redeployed to build containment lines and help fight fires surrounding Braidwood. This equipment will likely remain on the fireground until the fires subside.

Drivers using unsealed roads are asked to pay attention to any temporary speed advisory signage, slow down where necessary and drive to the conditions.