Many broadacre farming businesses rely on the capture and storage of surface water in multiple small paddock dams for stock and domestic use. These dams have limited capacity to store water for multiple years and rely on regular surface runoff to be replenished. In a ‘normal’ year reduced runoff may still be sufficient, but in drought conditions they are often inadequate. A lack of water restricts the ability to graze any remaining feed e.g. crop stubble, failed crops or dry standing feed and leads to forced livestock sale (can’t cart water) and restricted domestic use (e.g. gardens). It also has implications for downstream users (other farmers, environment) reliant on overflow water. Knowing the suitability of existing farm dams helps plan for better drought resilience.