Then and Now | A challenging vision for the Murray River

Part 2 – Planning a Dam

Over the following two years, 24 other sites were investigated with 158 test bores drilled. On October 15, 1918, NSW decided the site just below the Mitta Junction with the Murray River was the best location for the dam.

They informed Victoria, who concurred, as did the River Murray Commission and in February 1920, the title Hume Weir was officially bestowed on the project.

Previously Mitta Mitta Dam Site, on November 12, 1919, Albury Municipal Council resolved to suggest to government that the dam be called Hume Reservoir.

In law, the Murray is all NSW territory until it enters SA and to the high-water mark on the Victorian bank. As such, the NSW Public Works Department was responsible for location, design and construction of the spillway.

The State Rivers and Water Supply Commission of Victoria had charge in their state where a gigantic earthen embankment with a reinforced concrete core wall keying into the spillway was to be built.

This core wall was 1166 metres long, 1.8 metres wide at the base and tapered to 600mm at the top. Both the spillway and core wall were bedded at least 900mm into bedrock, the depth of which varied considerably across the valley.

By damming both rivers, the proposed capacity doubled to 1,250,000 acre-ft. (1,542 Gl).

With an eye to the future, the Commission acquired enough land to enable the capacity of the dam to be increased to 2,000,000 acre-ft, (2,467 Gl) ‘sometime in the future.’

In NSW, 15,582 acres (6305 ha), costing £215,000 and in Victoria, 87,268 acres (35,316 ha), costing £598,500 were acquired.

Not many were pleased with the compensation offered. Court cases and appeals continued for years.

‘In the future’ came in the decade of the 1950s. Work began on raising the water level, resulting in elevated uplift pressure on the wall. This was addressed by drilling scores of holes down to bedrock and inserting tensioning cables.

Twenty-nine gates were installed and the power station with two turbines was commissioned in 1957. Tallangatta was relocated, allowing for the eight-metre increase of storage height.

Albury and District Historical Society meets the second Wednesday of each month at the Commercial Club Albury at 7.30 pm, all welcome.

Visit our website at www.alburyhistory.org.au for more images of the Hume Dam construction or view the 83-minute video on YouTube at https://youtu.be/IGo4A0Q_MzE

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