18 Feb, 2020

Warragamba Dam was offline to Sydney due to ash and debris from recent rain events

An article was published in The Canberra Times on Sunday stating that WaterNSW are closely monitoring Sydney’s main water supply after recent heavy rain washed ash and debris into Warragamba dam.

After sediment, ash and debris was clearly visible on the surface of the lake, WaterNSW temporarily shut off the supply of raw water from Lake Burragorang (part of Warragamba Dam) to the Prospect Water Filtration Plant on February 9 and were forced to find alternate water sources to supply Sydney.

Water was drawn from Prospect Reservoir and the Upper Canal while WaterNSW worked to mitigate the potential risks to the water quality.

The article stated that:

“Containment barriers have been installed at three locations on Lake Burragorang to limit the amount of ash and debris entering the dam supply while experts continue to monitor the water quality”.

The article went on to say that:

“Warragamba Dam will return as the main source of untreated water supply to Sydney over the weekend, a WaterNSW spokesman said.”

According to the article, WaterNSW will continue to closely monitor the water quality in Warragamba.

Phoslock is an Australian product owned by Phoslock Environmental Technologies (PET). It is used to bind excess dissolved phosphorus in water bodies to improve water quality and sustain the ecosystem service provided by aquatic environments. Phoslock is one of the measures used by water body managers as a tool to improve water quality and safeguard biodiversity of aquatic life.

The Canberra Times article can be found at: https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/6632422/sydneys-water-monitored-after-ash-run-off/?cs=14231