Lake Gordon is a man-made reservoir created by the Gordon Dam, located on the upper reaches of the Gordon River in the south-west region of Tasmania, Australia.
| Lake Gordon | |
|---|---|
 The 140 m (459 ft) high Gordon Dam, built in 1974, creates Lake Gordon. | |
  Lake Gordon | |
 Map showing Lake Gordon in Tasmania | |
| Location | South-west Tasmania |
| Coordinates | 42°44′S 146°10′E / 42.733°S 146.167°E |
| Type | Reservoir |
| Primary inflows |
|
| Primary outflows | Gordon River |
| Catchment area | 1,280 km2 (494 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Australia |
| Managing agency | Hydro Tasmania |
| Built | 1974 |
| Construction engineer | Hydro-Electric Commission TAS |
| First flooded | 1974 |
| Surface area | 278 km2 (107 sq mi) |
| Water volume | 12,359,040 ML (436,455.4×106 cu ft) |
| References | [1] |
Features
editThe reservoir was formed in the early 1970s as a result of the dam construction by the Hydro-Electricity Commission of Tasmania in order to create an upper storage for the Gordon Power Station, the largest and most controversial hydro-electric power scheme in Tasmania.[2]
Drawing from a catchment area of 1,280 square kilometres (490 sq mi), Lake Gordon is Tasmania's largest lake, with a surface area of 278 square kilometres (107 sq mi), with storage capacity of 12,359,040 megalitres (436,455.4×106 cu ft)[1] or 12.5 km3 (3.0 cu mi) of water, the equivalent of twenty-five times the amount of water in Port Jackson. Lake Pedder is connected to Lake Gordon through the McPartlans Pass Canal at 42°50′51″S 146°11′45″E / 42.84750°S 146.19583°E.
Controversy
editAdditional dams were proposed for the lower Gordon River, however they were subject to political protest led by The Wilderness Society, most notably the Franklin Dam controversy during the early 1980s. In 1983 the Hawke-led Australian Government intervened and overturned a decision by the Tasmanian Government to dam the lower Gordon. When the Tasmanian Government refused to halt work in the UNESCO-listed World Heritage Area, the Australian Government successfully sought a ruling in the High Court of Australia in Commonwealth v Tasmania. The lower Gordon was not dammed.[3]
Tasmanian Energy Crisis
editIn early 2016, the lowest ever water supply levels in the lake were recorded during the 2016 Tasmanian energy crisis.[4][5] However, by July of next year the drought had ended, and the lake had swelled by twenty metres over ten months.[6]
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ 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 23 June 2015.
- ^ McKenry, Keith (1972) A History and critical analysis of the controversy concerning the Gordon River Power Scheme pp. 9–39 in Australian Conservation Foundation (1972) Pedder Papers – Anatomy of a Decision Parkville, Vic. Australian Conservation Foundation
- ^ Harries, David (March 2011). "Hydroelectricity in Australia: past, present and future". Ecogeneration. Great Southern Press. Archived from the original on 6 July 2015. Retrieved 6 July 2015.
- ^ Baines, Richard (24 March 2016). "Energy crisis: Tasmania's key hydroelectric source Lake Gordon at record low". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
- ^ Gramenz, Emilie (31 March 2016). "Lake Gordon dam level fall captured in dramatic video". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
- ^ Roger Hanson (8 February 2017). "Twin tales of Lake Gordon: Mercury, The (Hobart)". The Mercury. Hobart: 15.
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