Tillegra Dam
Encyclopedia
Tillegra Dam was a proposed dam on the Williams River
to be located 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Dungog
, in the Hunter Region of New South Wales
, Australia
. It was first proposed in the 1970s but a formal proposal was not announced until 2006. That proposal was scrapped in November 2010. However, the Hunter Water Corporation still owns large tracts of land in the area of the proposed dam area.
pricing. On 13 November 2006, the NSW Government
announced proposals for a A$
300 million dam at Tillegra to supply water to the Lower Hunter Region and Central Coast. The justification for the dam was based primarily on climate change
, with population growth in the Hunter Region also of some relatively minor concern. The announcement was made without prior community consultation and there is no mention of the proposed dam in Hunter Water's Integrated Water Resource Plan of August 2006. Nor is the proposal mentioned in the 2006 State Plan, which was released the next day.
, announced the cancellation of the dam after the Planning Minister refused to approve it. The refusal was based on both the potential for environmental damage and the lack of proper consideration of alternative water security measures. The state government had already spent $100 million on the project.
Williams River (New South Wales)
The Williams River is a river that flows through Dungog, Clarence Town and Seaham in New South Wales, Australia. The river flows generally south east and south for about to its confluence with the Hunter River, just to the west of the Fitzgerald Bridge at Raymond Terrace. Previously it was known...
to be located 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Dungog
Dungog, New South Wales
Dungog is a country town on the Williams River in the upper Hunter Valley in New South Wales, Australia. Located in the middle of dairy and timber country, it is the centre of the Dungog Shire Local Government Area and at the 2006 census it had a population of 2,102 people. The area includes the...
, in the Hunter Region of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It was first proposed in the 1970s but a formal proposal was not announced until 2006. That proposal was scrapped in November 2010. However, the Hunter Water Corporation still owns large tracts of land in the area of the proposed dam area.
Overview
The Tillegra Dam was first proposed by the Hunter Water Corporation in the 1970s, but was deferred indefinitely in the 1980s due to the success of user paysUser pays
User pays, or beneficiary pays, is a pricing approach based on the idea that the most efficient allocation of resources occurs when consumers pay the full cost of the goods that they consume. In public finance it stands with another principle of "ability to pay," which states that those who have...
pricing. On 13 November 2006, the NSW Government
Government of New South Wales
The form of the Government of New South Wales is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1856, although it has been amended many times since then...
announced proposals for a A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
300 million dam at Tillegra to supply water to the Lower Hunter Region and Central Coast. The justification for the dam was based primarily on climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
, with population growth in the Hunter Region also of some relatively minor concern. The announcement was made without prior community consultation and there is no mention of the proposed dam in Hunter Water's Integrated Water Resource Plan of August 2006. Nor is the proposal mentioned in the 2006 State Plan, which was released the next day.
Opposition
The No Tillegra Dam Group was formed to prevent the building of the dam. Opponents say the dam is grossly excessive for this need, will drown valuable agricultural land and greater water efficiency, demand management and recycling would eliminate the need for the dam.Cancellation
On 28 November 2010 the NSW Premier, Kristina KeneallyKristina Keneally
Kristina Kerscher Keneally MP, is an Australian politician and was the 42nd Premier of New South Wales. She was elected leader of the Australian Labor Party in New South Wales and thus Premier in 2009, but went on to lose government to the Liberal/National Coalition at the March 2011 state election...
, announced the cancellation of the dam after the Planning Minister refused to approve it. The refusal was based on both the potential for environmental damage and the lack of proper consideration of alternative water security measures. The state government had already spent $100 million on the project.
Statistics
- Height of dam wall: 80 m (262 ft)
- Length of dam wall: 800 m (2,625 ft)
- Surface area: 21 km² (8.1 sq mi)
- Length of lake: 10 km (6 mi)
- Total capacity: 450 gigalitres
- Average flow of Williams River: 94 gigalitres per annum.
- Estimated Cost: 477 million (as of April 2010)