Tumut Pond Dam () is a major ungated

concrete arch An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct (a ...

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

across the upper reaches of the Tumut River in the

Snowy Mountains The Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", is an IBRA subregion in southern New South Wales, Australia, and is the tallest mountain range in mainland Australia, being part of the continent's Great Dividing Range cordillera syst ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. The dam's main purpose is for the generation of hydro-power and is one of the sixteen major dams that comprise the

Snowy Mountains Scheme The Snowy Mountains Scheme or Snowy scheme is a hydroelectricity and irrigation complex in south-east Australia. The Scheme consists of sixteen major dams; nine power stations; two pumping stations; and of tunnels, pipelines and aqueducts that ...

, a vast hydroelectricity and irrigation complex constructed in south-east Australia between 1949 and 1974 and now run by

Snowy Hydro Snowy Hydro Limited is an electricity generation and retailing company in Australia that owns, manages, and maintains the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme which consists of nine hydro-electric power stations and sixteen large dams connecte ...

. The impounded

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contr ...

is called the Tumut Pond Reservoir, or less formally, the Tumut Pondage.

Location and features

Completed in 1959, Tumut Pond Dam is a major dam, located approximately south-east of Cabramurra. The dam was constructed by a consortium comprising Kaiser-Walsh-Perini-Raymond based on engineering plans developed by the

United States Bureau of Reclamation The Bureau of Reclamation, and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and opera ...

under contract from the

Snowy Mountains Hydroelectric Authority Snowy Hydro Limited is an electricity generation and retailing company in Australia that owns, manages, and maintains the Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme which consists of nine hydro-electric power stations and sixteen large dams connecte ...

. The dam wall comprising of concrete is high and long. At 100% capacity the dam wall holds back of water. The surface area of Tumut Pond Reservoir is and the catchment area is . The spillway is capable of discharging . The crest of the dam wall forms part of the road between Cabramurra and

Khancoban Khancoban () is a small town in Snowy Valleys Council, New South Wales, Australia. The town is located from the state capital, Sydney and from the state border with Victoria, in the foothills of the Snowy Mountains, near the upper reaches of t ...

. The road is closed to through traffic in winter as it is not routinely cleared of snow and ice.

Power generation

Downstream of the dam wall and located underground is

Tumut 1 Tumut Hydroelectric Power Station () is a series of three of the original four, now five hydroelectric power stations on the Tumut River in New South Wales, Australia, that are part of the Snowy Mountains Scheme. The generating assets of the ...

, a conventional hydroelectric

power station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many ...

, that has four

turbine A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced by a turbine can be used for generating ...

generators, with a generating capacity of of

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...

; and a net generation of per annum. The power station has rated

hydraulic head Hydraulic head or piezometric head is a specific measurement of liquid pressure above a vertical datum., 410 pages. See pp. 43–44., 650 pages. See p. 22. It is usually measured as a liquid surface elevation, expressed in units of length, ...

. The underground powerhouse is located below ground level.

Tumut Pond Reservoir

Tumut Pond Reservoir or Tumut Pond Pondage (sometimes also Tumut 1 Reservoir/Tumut 1 Pondage) is formed by the Tumut Pond Dam. Snowmelt and other runoff enter the reservoir from the upper Tumut River and the dam impounds the river's natural flow below the

Tumut Two Dam Tumut Two Dam or Tumut Two () is a major ungated concrete gravity dam across the upper reaches of the Tumut River in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's main purpose is for the generation of hydro-power and is one of ...

wall. Water from the reservoir, after passing over the spillway of the Tumut Pond Dam, flows downstream, above the underground Tumut 1 Power Station, and into the impounded waters of

Talbingo Reservoir Talbingo Dam is a major ungated rock fill with clay core embankment dam with concrete chute spillway across the Tumut River upstream of Talbingo in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales, Australia. The impounded reservoir is called Ta ...

, formed by the

Talbingo Dam Talbingo Dam is a major ungated rock fill with clay core embankment dam with concrete chute spillway across the Tumut River upstream of Talbingo in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales, Australia. The impounded reservoir is called T ...

; past Tumut 3 Power Station, into Jounama Pondage, formed by Jounama Dam; and then into Blowering Reservoir, formed by Blowering Dam, passing through Blowering Power Stations. The natural flow of the Tumut River continues into the

Riverina The Riverina is an agricultural region of south-western New South Wales, Australia. The Riverina is distinguished from other Australian regions by the combination of flat plains, warm to hot climate and an ample supply of water for irrigation ...

region.

References

External links

* {{Energy in New South Wales , state=autocollapse Dams in New South Wales Snowy Mountains Scheme Dams completed in 1959 Arch dams Dams in the Murray River basin 1959 establishments in Australia

Location and features

Power generation

Tumut Pond Reservoir

See also

References

External links