Tillegra Dam was a proposed dam on the Williams River to be located northwest of Dungog, in the

Hunter Region The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its tributaries with highland areas to the north and so ...

of New South Wales, Australia. It was first proposed in the 1970s but a formal proposal was not announced until 2006. Community opposition and changing needs saw the end of the proposal in November 2010.

Hunter Water Hunter Water is a state owned corporation providing drinking water, wastewater, recycled water and some stormwater services to 500,000 people in the Lower Hunter Region in New South Wales, Australia. It was formed in 1892, when the Hunter Distr ...

divested itself of its Tillegra landholding in 2015, permanently ending the proposal.

Overview

The Tillegra Dam was first proposed by

in the 1970s, but was deferred indefinitely in the 1980s due to the success of user pays pricing. On 13 November 2006, the NSW Government announced proposals for a A$300 million dam at Tillegra to supply water to the Lower

and Central Coast. The justification for the dam was based primarily on climate change and population growth in the Hunter Region.

Opposition

The No Tillegra Dam Group was formed to prevent the building of the dam. Opponents claimed the dam proposal was grossly excessive for 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.

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Kristina Keneally 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: * Length of dam wall: * Surface area: * Length of lake: * Total capacity: 450 gigalitres * Average flow of Williams River: 94 gigalitres per annum. * Estimated Cost: 477 million (as of April 2010)

References

{{Hunter Region places and items of interest Cancelled dams Dam controversies Hunter Region Unbuilt buildings and structures in Australia Cancelled projects in Australia