Works continue at Winburndale Dam to strengthen the dam wall, which will ensure it will remain safe in times of high inflows.
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Winburndale Dam, which was opened in 1934, can hold an estimated 1700 million litres at capacity, sourcing waters from a catchment area of approximately 88 square kilometres, with the dam currently at 68.3 per cent capacity.
On Monday morning, Bathurst mayor Bobby Bourke and Bathurst MP Paul Toole visited the dam - located almost 30 kilometres east of Bathurst - inspecting the work which has been carried out by Eodo.
The project is currently on track to be completed by the end of this year.
"We've put about five months of hard work in and the process is running really smoothly," Eodo project manager Dean Windsor said.
"This dam has been identified that in a one-in-a-hundred-year flood it could have structural issues. What we plan to do is to strengthen this dam wall."
Holes are being drilled from the top of the dam wall into the bedrock below and then high tension steel cables will be strained tight to strengthen the wall.
"We've put about five months of hard work in and the process is running really smoothly."
- Eodo project manager Dean Windsor
The work will secure the dam's wall for over a century.
The project is one of several that the NSW Government is delivering, including a pipeline replacement from Winburndale Dam to the Bathurst Water Filtration Treatment Plant and storm water harvesting.
"These projects will increase the water supply sources available to Bathurst and will boost the resilience of the city to withstand pressure caused by the drought," Mr Toole explained.
"There is no doubt they will benefit both the community and industries to the Bathurst region and are a step in the right direction in providing water security for Bathurst now and into the future."
While Bathurst is fairly dry, Bathurst Regional Council manager of waster and water Russell Deans said there are quite a few projects already in motion.
"We're getting a lot of assistance," he said.
"We've seen a significant push from our population to work with us in regards to the restrictions. The amount of water we're needing in Bathurst is remaining quite low.
"Planning ahead and caring out projects like these are critical."
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