Jim’s Australiana Spot – 2UE - july 5, 2011

 Sydney’s Water Supply

Sydney’s water supply has had seven phases …

The Tank Stream
Busby's Bore
Botany Swamps Scheme
Upper Nepean Scheme
Supplying Sydney's south
Warragamba Dam
The Shoalhaven Scheme

Remember the name of the little guy who made us all boil our water a few years ago and sounds like a Greek Wrestler - Cryptospiridium. That was only one of many trials Sydney's water supply has been through.

The Tank Stream

Sydney's original water supply came from the Tank Stream named for the 'tanks' or reservoirs cut into its sides to save water. The stream, which wound its way through the colony before emptying into Sydney Harbour at Circular Quay, degenerated into an open sewer and was abandoned in 1826. The stream was a social barrier officers and gentleman on east riff raff on west.

Busby's Bore
Convict labour then developed Busby's Bore, a four kilometre tunnel leading from the Lachlan Swamps, (Centennial Park) and ending in the south eastern corner of Hyde Park.

Botany Swamps Scheme
By 1852 drought and increasing population led to the call for a more permanent water supply for Sydney. A third water source, the Botany Swamps Scheme, began operations in late 1859 but within 20 years, the once copious supply of fresh water was depleted.

Upper Nepean Scheme
The innovative Upper Nepean Scheme was Sydney's fourth source of water supply. Completed in 1888, the scheme diverted water from the Cataract, Cordeaux, Avon and Nepean rivers to Prospect Reservoir via 64 kilometres of tunnels, canals and aqueducts known collectively as the Upper Canal.

However, the Upper Nepean Scheme bought only temporary relief to Sydney's water supply woes. The drought of 1901-1902 brought Sydney perilously close to a complete water famine. After two Royal Commissions into Sydney's water supply, the authorities agreed that a dam be built on Cataract River. The successive building of Cataract, Cordeaux, Avon and Nepean dams between 1907 and 1935 greatly improved the Scheme's capacity.

Warragamba Dam	Cemetery Bay

Supplying Sydney's south
Meanwhile, a scheme to supply water from the Woronora River to Sutherland and Cronulla in Sydney's south was resurrected. Construction of Woronora Dam began in 1927 and was completed in 1941.

Warragamba Dam
The potential of Warragamba as an important site for a major dam was identified as early as 1845, but plans were deferred during the construction of the Upper Nepean dams. An increasing demand for water, combined with a record drought from 1934 to 1942, forced the development of Warragamba Dam to ensure a reliable water supply. Construction of Warragamba Dam commenced in 1948 and was completed in 1960.

The Shoalhaven Scheme
The plan to develop a water supply system in the Shoalhaven first rose during the end of World War One. It was not until several decades later, in 1968, that the then Water Board consulted the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority about the longer term water needs of Sydney and the south coast. There was concern that Warragamba Dam might prove inadequate to meet Sydney's water supply needs by the mid 1970s.

The advice was to proceed with the Shoalhaven Scheme - situated in the lower Shoalhaven River and Kangaroo Valley areas - on the coastal range above Fitzroy Falls and on the Upper Wingecarribee River. Construction began in 1971 and was carried out by contractors under the supervision of the Snowy Mountains Engineering Corporation. The Scheme was completed in 1977 at a final cost of $128 million.

SEND HER DOWN
Jim Haynes

We used to say, ‘Send her down Hughie,’ ‘Send her down,’ that’s what we’d say. After straining our eyes At endless blue skies, When we saw the clouds gather – we’d pray. We’d crack the old jokes – ‘Get Don Talbot, Teach the frogs how to swim once again.’ ‘We’d love to see showers, For the kids’ sake not ours, Well, the missus and me have seen rain.’ ‘It’s the sheep that I worry about, They’ll faint ’cos they’ve never seen rain, To revive ’em you must Get a bucket of dust And throw on ’em to wake ’em again!’ And then there’d be ants in the sugar And there’d be a ring round the moon – And there would be smiles Round the country for miles, ’Cos we knew it was gonna rain soon. And then, when it came, you could smell it, A scent as the cool breeze unfurled – A wonderful smell As the first big drops fell – The most beautiful smell in the world. And boy, that tin roof took a beating, Couldn’t hear yourself talk for the sound, But still you would pray In that strange outback way, ‘Thanks Hughie – keep sending her down.’ We used to say, ‘Send her down Hughie,’ ‘Send her down,’ that’s what we’d say – After straining our eyes At endless blue skies, When we saw the clouds gather – we’d pray.

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