The Atkinson Dam is an earth-fill embankment

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, aqua ...

across the Buaraba Creek and a naturally forming

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') an ...

, which is located near Lowood in the South East region of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia. The main purpose of the dam is for

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...

of farming land in the lower

Lockyer Valley The Lockyer Valley is an area of rich farmlands that lies to the west of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and east of Toowoomba. The Lockyer Valley is rated among the top ten most fertile farming areas in the world, and the intensively cultiv ...

. The resultant

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

is called Lake Atkinson.

Location and features

Located in the locality of Atkinsons Dam, northeast of in the

Somerset Region The Somerset Region is a local government area located in the West Moreton region of South East Queensland, Australia, northwest of the City of Brisbane. The region is centred on the town of Esk, which also serves as the council seat. Somer ...

local government area of

West Moreton West Moreton is a region of the Australian state of Queensland, consisting of the entire rural western portion of South East Queensland. It sits inland from both the Brisbane metropolitan area and the Gold Coast and to the east of the Darling D ...

region, the dam wall was constructed in 1970 over the natural Atkinsons Lagoon. The dam wall is high and long and holds back of water when at full capacity. The surface area of the reservoir is and the catchment area is . The uncontrolled spillway has a discharge capacity of . The dam is connected to Seven Mile Lagoon via a channel. Facilities at the dam include two boat ramps, picnic tables and two caravan parks. A maximum of 15 boats are permitted on the lake at any one time. In mid-2006 the dam was empty due to

drought A drought is a period of drier-than-normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, ...

conditions in Australia.

Fishing

Fish stocking Fish stocking is the practice of releasing fish that are artificially raised in a fish hatchery, hatchery into a natural body of water (river, lake, or ocean), to supplement existing wild populations or to create a new population where previously ...

of silver perch,

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

, southern saratoga and

golden perch The golden perch (''Macquaria ambigua'') is a medium-sized, yellow or gold-coloured species of Australian freshwater fish found primarily in the Murray-Darling River system, though a subspecies is found in the Lake Eyre-Cooper Creek system, an ...

has resulted in an excellent fishery, although the dry periods, high

evaporation Evaporation is a type of vaporization that occurs on the Interface (chemistry), surface of a liquid as it changes into the gas phase. A high concentration of the evaporating substance in the surrounding gas significantly slows down evapora ...

rates and drawdowns for irrigation in summer, result in low water levels as well as oxygen depleted water which makes fishing much more difficult. Other fish that are present includes eel-tailed catfish and spangled perch.

References

External links

Atkinson's Dam Fishing Information, Map, pictures & Water Level Gauge
{{DEFAULTSORT:Atkinson Dam Dams completed in 1970 Buildings and structures in Somerset Region Dams in Queensland Atkinson, Lake Earth-filled dams 1970 establishments in Australia Lockyer Valley Region

Location and features

Fishing

See also

References

External links