The Berejiklian government has suspended rules on how much water it can pump from the Shoalhaven River to Sydney after the city's storage levels posted their second-lowest winter runoff levels.

Sydney's Metropolitan Water Plan stipulates curbs on Shoalhaven transfers should be dropped only when city dams sink to 30 per cent full. Water Minister Melinda Pavey removed the limits even though the reservoirs sit just below the half-full mark.

The rapid drop in Sydney's dam levels has prompted the government to remove restrictions on what it can pump from the Shoalhaven River. Credit:Louise Kennerley

Independent MP Justin Field said the change meant there was now no regulated limit to transfers from the Shoalhaven, a river that flows through Nowra, among other towns.

“It’s clear that politicians in Sydney would rather transfer more water from the Shoalhaven than tighten water restrictions on the city," Mr Field said. "Sydney has a poor track record of water efficiency and recycling and the Shoalhaven is paying for poor water management.