A Wagga councillor is calling for the Burrinjuck Dam wall to be raised in an effort to stop flooding downstream as witnessed just 12 months ago.
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During the 2022 flood events across the region, the Burrinjuck Dam hit capacity and was forced to spill excess water downstream, putting communities including North Wagga at danger of going underwater.
On November 4, the Murrumbidgee River peaked at 9.72 metres, the highest level in 10 years, stopping less than 20 centimetres from the top of the North Wagga levee.
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Councillor Richard Foley believes he's found a solution to that flooding dilemma.
Cr Foley tabled a late motion before Wagga City Council's Monday night meeting, which called for the state government to consider re-purposing funding from the recently scrapped plans to raise the Wyangala Dam wall to look at a similar project for Burrinjuck instead.
![Wagga councillor calls for dam wall raising to stem future floods Wagga councillor calls for dam wall raising to stem future floods](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/172474527/a099a0f1-ce0a-4f6b-98f1-098bc683010c_rotated_180.JPG/r0_627_4032_2894_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The Burrinjuck Dam has a capacity of 1028 gigalitres, but with a catchment area of 12,953 square kilometres, about 33 per cent larger than the whole of the Snowy Mountains scheme, Mr Foley said the project was a great opportunity.
"Water is a contentious issue in this country at the moment with the Murray Darling Basin Plan, the environmental flow," Cr Foley said.
"There's a lot of argy-bargy between the agricultural sector and the government over this and I believe this presents a win-win situation for all," he said.
If the dam wall was raised 20 metres the potential storage volume would increase to 3000 gigalitres.
![Wagga councillor calls for dam wall raising to stem future floods Wagga councillor calls for dam wall raising to stem future floods](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/172474527/e6573c0b-00a0-4a8a-bbb5-232db25416cb.jpg/r0_0_649_365_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Cr Foley believes the dam wall raising will not only help stop flooding downstream, but also benefit irrigators.
"Irrigation farmers have water they are worried about losing, and quite rightly so," he said.
Cr Foley said it was about finding a way to save communities from this problem.
"I believe the solution is to increase [the capacity] that is already there. The Burrinjuck Dam catchment is ... bigger than the entire Snowy Scheme, so it's got the capacity," he said.
Following debate on Monday night, councillors unanimously backed the motion calling on Local Government NSW to advocate to the state government to start an investigation into the viability of an upgrade to the 110-year-old Burrinjuck Dam.
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