Upper Nepean Scheme

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For the Avon Dam in Devon, England, see Dartmoor reservoirs.

The Upper Nepean Scheme is a series of dams and weirs in the catchments of the Cataract, Cordeaux, Avon and Nepean rivers of New South Wales, Australia. The scheme includes four dams and two weirs and provides water to the Macarthur and Illawarra regions, the Wollondilly Shire, and metropolitan Sydney.

History

By 1867, Sydney was outgrowing the water supply available from Botany Swamps and the Governor (Sir John Young) appointed a Commission to recommend a future water supply. In 1869, the Commission recommended the Upper Nepean Scheme. This comprised weirs on the Cataract and Nepean rivers, a storage reservoir at Prospect and 63.25 miles (101.79 km) of pipelines, tunnels, canals and aqueducts to bring water from the 347 square miles (900 km2) catchment area to Sydney. Work on the Scheme began in 1880 and was completed in 1888.[1](pp15–17) The Scheme was a significant feat of engineering at the time of construction.

In June 1885 Sydney was in the grip of a severe drought and the Upper Nepean Scheme was incomplete. The Government accepted an offer from Hudson Brothers to bridge the gaps and deliver 3 million imperial gallons (14 ML; 3,600,000 US gal) of water per day into Botany Swamps. This became known as Hudsons' Temporary Scheme and was turned on on 30 January 1886. This emergency work was dismantled as the main scheme was completed.[1](pp18–19)

As originally built, the Upper Nepean Scheme was capable of supporting an estimated population of 540,000. By 1902, Sydney had a population of 523,000 and was again in the grip of a severe drought. A Royal Commission appointed to report on Sydney's water supply recommended a dam on the Cataract River and construction commenced in the same year. Dams were subsequently built on each of the Cordeaux, Avon and Nepean rivers, with the last being completed in 1935. Each dam includes a public picnic area.[1](pp25–31) In total, the four dams hold 483,600 ML (1.064×1011 imp gal; 1.278×1011 US gal) and can safely provide 353 megalitres per day.[1](p268)

The Scheme is now managed by the Sydney Catchment Authority.

Cataract Dam

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Main article: Cataract Dam
Cataract Dam Wall

Cataract Dam is a straight dam with an unlined side spillway extending from the left abutment. It is 183 feet (56 m) tall, 811 feet (247 m) long and holds 97,190 ML (2.138×1010 imp gal; 2.567×1010 US gal) of water.[1](p268) Cataract Dam was the first dam built in the Upper Nepean Scheme, it was also first dam in Australia to use pre-cast moulded concrete blocks for the upstream face of the dam. The core of the dam is large (2-4½ ton) sandstone blocks, quarried onsite and cemented together. The downstream face is of mass poured basalt concrete, with a basalt facing. A readily accessible source of suitable rock was located some distance away at Sherbrooke, also known as Ferndale, situated near the top of Bulli Pass. To transport the basalt from the quarry to the dam construction site, a 2 ft (610 mm) gauge steam tramway, 8.8 km (5.5 mi) long, was constructed.[2] Dam construction began in 1902 and was completed in 1907, and the spillway was widened in 1915.[1](pp27–28) Ernest Macartney de Burgh was the supervising engineer for the project from 1904.[3] Poet Banjo Paterson wrote a satirical ballad "The Dam that Keele Built" about the politics behind the construction of Cataract Dam.[4]

Cordeaux Dam

File:CordeauxDam.JPG
Cordeaux Dam #3 Wall

Cordeaux Dam is a curved dam with an unlined side spillway on the left abutment. It is 191 feet (58 m) high, 1,327 feet (404 m) long and holds 93,640 ML (2.060×1010 imp gal; 2.474×1010 US gal). Construction began in 1918 and was completed in 1926.[1](p268)[5] The wall consists of large sandstone blocks, quarried onsite and cemented together, faced with a combination of bluestone and sandstone concrete.[1](pp28–29) The blue metal used in the construction of the dam was supplied from the Government Quarries at Kiama and brought by rail to Douglas Park. From here it was conveyed by aerial ropeway across the Nepean Gorge to an interchange on the eastern side where the material was transferred to a 2 ft (610 mm) gauge steam tramway to a point adjacent to the dam site.[6]

Avon Dam

File:AvonDam.JPG
Avon Dam Wall
File:Avon Dam plate.jpg
Avon Dam plate

Avon Dam is a curved dam; it is 237 feet (72 m) tall, 732 feet (223 m) long and holds 146,700 ML (3.23×1010 imp gal; 3.88×1010 US gal). It has the largest capacity of all the dams in the Scheme. Construction began in 1921 and was completed in 1927.[1](p268)[7] The dam construction and materials are the same as Cordeaux.[1](p29) All materials for construction were transported from Bargo railway station on a specially built road, all the other dams in the scheme used rail transport.[5] There were some light tramways constructed at the dam site, however it would appear that no locomotives were employed; skips and other items being moved by winch, horse or manpower.[8]

Nepean Dam

File:NepeanDam.JPG
Nepean Dam Wall
File:Nepean Dam plate.jpg
Nepean Dam plate

Nepean Dam is a curved dam; it is 269 feet (82 m) tall and 709 feet (216 m) long. Construction on the Dam began in 1926, construction was delayed for two years during the Depression, it was finally completed in 1935.[1](p268)[9] The capacity is listed variously as 17,898×10^6 imp gal (81,370 ML; 2.1495×1010 US gal)[1](p268) and 67,730 ML (1.490×1010 imp gal; 1.789×1010 US gal).[9]

Railway sidings were established on the Main Southern Line at a point between Bargo and Yerrinbool. Transport to the dam site was again by light railway, on this occasion of standard gauge. This avoided transhipment from the Government vehicles bringing materials from large commercial quarries, effectively making the line an extended privately owned siding. The line was 4 km (2.5 mi) long through gentle countryside. Trains were worked by a variety of locomotives, including a former Sydney Steam Tram Motor. Additionally, there was a system of narrow (610 mm/​2 ft) gauge lines in use at the dam construction site.[10]

Additional work was carried out on the spillway between 1943 and 1947 to prevent scouring of the dam foundations.[1](p31)

Gallery

  • Cataract at capacity.jpg

    Cataract reservoir at full capacity, discharging through spillway

  • Cataract spillway.jpg

    Detail of Cataract Dam spillway

  • Cataract outlet works.jpg

    Outlet works at Cataract Dam

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Construction Railways of the Upper Nepean Dams - Cataract Dam Longworth, Jim Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, July, 1993 pp163-174
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Construction Railways of the Upper Nepean Dams - Cordeaux Dam Longworth, Jim Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, October, 1993 pp249-259
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Construction Railways of the Upper Nepean Dams - Avon Dam Longworth, Jim Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, January, 1994 pp14-19
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Construction Railways of the Upper Nepean Dams - Nepean Dam Longworth, Jim Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, May, 1994 pp137-153

References

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