Flooding in Australia's most populous state has become the new normal, as residents in the Greater Sydney area contend with increasingly erratic seasonal swings.

The area, which is home to 8.12 million people, or around a third of the country's total population, has always experienced some degree of flooding during the early summer months.

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But what was previously a once-in-a-generation event has become commonplace, raising questions as to the long term sustainability of flood-prone communities.

More than half a meter of rain (1.6 feet) has drenched parts of eastern New South Wales during the last 48 hours, with spills from numerous dams causing flood warnings across the region.

In western Sydney, the Warragamba Dam -- Australia's largest urban reservoir -- started overflowing at 2 a.m. Sunday, and at its peak 515 gigalitres was flooding over its walls -- the same amount of water held in Sydney Harbour.

Flooding in Australia's most populous state has become the new normal, as residents in the Greater Sydney area contend with increasingly erratic seasonal swings.

The area, which is home to 8.12 million people, or around a third of the country's total population, has always experienced some degree of flooding during the early summer months.

*

But what was previously a once-in-a-generation event has become commonplace, raising questions as to the long term sustainability of flood-prone communities.

More than half a meter of rain (1.6 feet) has drenched parts of eastern New South Wales during the last 48 hours, with spills from numerous dams causing flood warnings across the region.

In western Sydney, the Warragamba Dam -- Australia's largest urban reservoir -- started overflowing at 2 a.m. Sunday, and at its peak 515 gigalitres was flooding over its walls -- the same amount of water held in Sydney Harbour.