The
Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme is the largest
engineering project in Australian history. The scheme is a network of
dams,
tunnels and
aqueducts serving two primary purposes; distribution of water for
irrigation, and generation of
electricity. Naturally a project of this scale had significant effects on the local
culture and
environment.
The scheme was begun in
1949 by an act of
Federal Parliament, partly to serve the power needs of the new capital
Canberra. It was completed in
1974 at a cost of approximately
$AUS1 billion. The scheme relies on water diverted from the
Murrumbidgee and
Murray river systems, and consists of 17 large
dams and nine
power stations.
Hydro-electricity:
The scheme was always ambitious, with
generators designed to be able to provide enough power to bring up the
grid for
south-eastern Australia after a complete shut-down. Fifty years after it's design, it still generates 3.7
gigawatts, or 17% of the power requirements of south-eastern Australia.
Irrigation:
The scheme resulted in increase flow to the west of the
Snowies, improving the
arability of the land. Some areas in the south of
NSW would have been unsuitable for
agriculture without the scheme. The scheme assists in
agricultural production of $AUS1,542 million per annum.
The large storage capacity allows the flow to be controlled, ensuring consistent flow during
droughts. The 1.2
teraliters/year released by the scheme can make up to 60% of the Murrumbidgee and 33% of the Murray during periods of low rainfall.
Culture:
The development of the scheme also had a significant impact on the
population of the area. People were brought in from across the globe to assist as
engineers and
labourers.
WWII refugees from across
Europe, as well as men from the
USA and
Canada,
Russia,
East Africa and
South America. Many of these people later settled in the area.
The work naturally required a development of the
infrastructure in the area, so
roads,
schools, and whole
towns were built. Towns like
Cooma now have disproportionately high
education levels for their sizes, due to the number of engineers who
settled there.
Environment:
Farming and changes in river flow have resulted in some
environmental degradation. Possible links to
algal blooms exist, as well as interruption of fish
migration and Soil
erosion due to increased farming.
aka: snowy scheme, snowy mountains scheme
sources:
www.snowywaterinquiry.org.au
ads.nsw.uca.org.au/publications/living_history.pdf
stories heard at the RSL