Bendora Dam

Dam in Australian Capital Territory

35°26′49″S 148°49′41″E / 35.447°S 148.828°E / -35.447; 148.828PurposePotable water supplyStatusOperationalOpening date1961 (1961)Owner(s)Icon WaterDam and spillwaysType of damArch damImpoundsCotter RiverHeight47 m (154 ft)Length174 m (571 ft)Elevation at crest778.2 m (2,553 ft) AHDDam volume30×10^³ m³ (1.1×10^⁶ cu ft)Spillways1Spillway typeUncontrolledSpillway capacity1,590 m³/s (56,000 cu ft/s)ReservoirCreatesBendora ReservoirTotal capacity11,540 ML (2.54×10⁹ imp gal; 3.05×10⁹ US gal)Catchment area91.364 km² (35.276 sq mi) + 196.342 km² (75.808 sq mi) in Corin dam catchmentSurface area75 ha (190 acres)Website
/www.iconwater.com.au

The Bendora Dam is a thin-wall, double curvature concrete arch dam across the upper reaches of the Cotter River, located within Namadgi National Park in the Australian Capital Territory, Australia. The impounded reservoir is called the Bendora Reservoir which is a supply source of potable water for the city of Canberra and its environs.

Location and features

Constructed by E S Clementson working from designs prepared by the Commonwealth Department of Works, the Bendora Dam was completed and opened in 1961 and was the first dam of its type built in Australia.^[1] The concrete dam wall built on a rock foundation is 47.2 metres (155 ft) high and 174 metres (571 ft) long with a volume of 30 thousand cubic metres (1.1×10^⁶ cu ft). The wall impounds 11,540 megalitres (408×10^⁶ cu ft) of water held within the Bendora Reservoir, forming a surface area of approximately 75 hectares (190 acres) ^[2]^[3]^[4] The uncontrolled spillway is capable of discharging 1,590 cubic metres per second (56,000 cu ft/s) from the 75-hectare (190-acre) Bendora Reservoir,^[2] with a high water level approximately 778 metres (2,552 ft) above sea level.^[4]

Water from the Bendora, together with the Corin (further upstream), is fed to the suburbs of Canberra via the Bendora Gravity Main.

References

^ Andrews, W. C., ed. (1990). Canberra's Engineering Heritage (2nd ed.). Canberra: Institution of Engineers. ISBN 0-85825-189-2.
^ ^a ^b "Register of Large Dams in Australia". Dams information. Australian National Committee on Large Dams. 2010. Archived from the original (Excel (requires download)) on 12 December 2013. Retrieved 4 April 2014.
^ "Map of Bendora Dam, ACT". Bonzle Digital Atlas of Australia. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
^ ^a ^b "Bendora Dam". ACTEW Water. ACTEW Corporation. 2011. Archived from the original on 21 April 2013. Retrieved 17 February 2013.