Waranga Dam

Dam in North Central region, Victoria

Waranga Dam

Waranga Basin at Harriman Point in 2023

Location of the Waranga Dam in Victoria

Country| Australia
Location| North Central region, Victoria
Coordinates| 36°33′S 145°06′E﻿ / ﻿36.550°S 145.100°E﻿ / -36.550; 145.100
Purpose| Irrigation
Status| Operational
Construction began| 1905 (1905)
Opening date| 1915 (1915); 1926 (1926)
Owner(s)| Goulburn–Murray Water
Dam and spillways
Type of dam| Embankment dam
Impounds| Off-stream
Height (foundation)| 12.2 m (40 ft)
Length| 7 km (4.3 mi)
Dam volume| 58.480 million m3 (2.0652 billion cu ft)
Reservoir
Creates| Waranga Basin (official)
Total capacity| 432,360 ML (95.11 billion imp gal; 114.22 billion US gal)
Surface area| 58.5 km2 (22.6 sq mi)
Website
www.g-mwater.com.au/water-resources/storages/warangabasin at Goulburn–Murray Water
[1]

The Waranga Dam is a major earthfill embankment dam with an uncontrolled spillway located approximately 150 kilometres (93 mi) north of Melbourne in the North Central region of the Australian state of Victoria. The impounded off-stream reservoir is Waranga Basin and forms part of the Goulburn River irrigation system, irrigating an area of 626 square kilometres (242 sq mi).[1] The dam and reservoir are located in Shire of Campaspe near the City of Greater Shepparton and is located 8 kilometres (5 mi) north-east of Rushworth, 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) south-west of Tatura, and near Murchison. When full, the reservoir covers an area of 58.5 square kilometres (22.6 sq mi).

The area now covered by the Waranga Basin includes a swamp that was known as Warranga (an indigenous word) or Gunn's after William Gunn, one of the early pastoralists who established his squatting run, also called Waranga, in the area surrounding the swamp. William Gunn was a Braehour Gunn who emigrated to Victoria in 1853 from Wick, Scotland. His half-brother was the Honourable Donald Gunn of Manitoba, Canada.[2] Gold was discovered near Waranga Swamp in 1853, making it one of Victoria's oldest goldfields.[3]

## Construction

[edit]

Construction of the earth dam began in 1905 and was completed in 1915 using picks, shovels and horse-drawn scoops. The site of the basin was a former swamp in the then Waranga Shire. Construction of the dam was commissioned by the State Rivers and Water Supply Commission of Victoria for the irrigation of the Western Goulburn Valley. At the time of construction, the Waranga Basin embankment was described as the largest project of its sort in the world with an embankment height of 8.8 metres (29 ft) and length of 7 kilometres (4.3 mi).[1]

Between 1915 and 1926, the embankment was raised in stages and a core wall was inserted. By 1921, the embankment was raised to 12.2 metres (40 ft) allowing the storage capacity to be increased to 432,360 ML (95.11 billion imp gal; 114.22 billion US gal), its current capacity.[4] The major road between Tatura and Rushworth crosses the outlet.

## Distribution of the water

[edit]

Waranga Basin stores water flowing downstream from Lake Eildon as well as having a catchment area of its own. Waranga Basin supplies water to the Central Goulburn Irrigation Area and Rochester Irrigation Area. However, the Waranga Western Channel takes some of the water 180 kilometres (110 mi) to Pyramid Hill and Boort. Goulburn–Murray Water is responsible for regulating the flow of water from the basin.

Normally, only about three-quarters of the 432,360 ML (95.11 billion imp gal; 114.22 billion US gal) can be used in irrigation. However, in 2002–03, an additional 90,000 ML (20 billion imp gal; 24 billion US gal) were pumped to the Goulburn Irrigation System to assist farmers experiencing severe drought.

## See also

[edit]

* Australia portal
* Water portal

* Irrigation in Australia
* List of reservoirs and dams in Victoria

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c "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 20 October 2014.
2. ^ See pages 370-372, Donald Gunn and Alastair Gunn 'Scotland and Beyond; the Families of Donald Gunn (Tormsdale) and John Gunn (Dalnaha, Strathmore and Braehour).'
3. ^ "RUSHWORTH - WARANGA NORTH MINING DIVISION" (PDF) (PDF). Victorian Government. Retrieved 13 August 2009.
4. ^ "Waranga Basin: Recreation Guide" (PDF) (PDF). Goulburn–Murray Water. February 2012. Retrieved 20 October 2014.

## External links

[edit]

* Goulburn Murray Water page on Waranga Basin
* Waranga Basin Pumping
* Waranga North East Football Association

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Waterways of the Goulburn Broken catchment, Victoria, Australia

Rivers|

* Acheron
* Big (Goulburn)
* Black
* Broken River
* Delatite
* Goulburn
* Howqua
* Jamieson
* Little (Cathedral Range)
* Little Rubicon
* Murray
* Murrindindi
* Royston
* Rubicon
* Steavenson
* Taggerty
* Taponga
* Torbreck
* Yea

Creeks|

* Boosey
* Brankeet
* Broken Creek
* Burnt (Strathbogie)
* Bylands
* Cameron
* Castle
* Cornella
* Creightons
* Dabyminga
* Dairy
* Dry
* Deep (Benalla)
* Deep (Moira)
* Faithfulls
* Five Mile (Benalla)
* Ford
* Goborup
* Godfrey
* Holland
* Home
* Honeysuckle
* Hughes
* King Parrot (Murrindindi)
* Kurkuruc
* Lima East
* Major
* Merton
* Mollison
* Nine Mile (Moira)
* Pine Lodge
* Pranjip
* Ryans
* Sam
* Sandy (Moira)
* Sawpit
* Seven Creeks
* Sheep Pen
* Spring (Murrindindi)
* Stringybark
* Sugarloaf (Mitchell)
* Sunday
* Tullah
* Watchbox
* Whiteheads
* Winton
* Wormangal
* Yallagalorrah

Lakes|

* Lake Cooper
* Lake Eildon
* Goulburn Weir
* Lake Mokoan
* Lake Mulwala
* Lake Nillahcootie
* Waranga Dam

* Rivers of Victoria
* Lakes of Victoria
* Goulburn Broken catchment

* v
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Water supply in Victoria, Australia

Greater Metropolitan Melbourne
dams / reservoirs by capacity|

* Thomson 1.123 million ML (247 billion imp gal; 297 billion US gal)
* Cardinia 287,000 ML (63 billion imp gal; 76 billion US gal)
* Upper Yarra 200,000 ML (44 billion imp gal; 53 billion US gal)
* Sugarloaf 96,000 ML (21 billion imp gal; 25 billion US gal)
* Silvan 40,000 ML (8.8 billion imp gal; 11 billion US gal)
* Tarago 37,500 ML (8.2 billion imp gal; 9.9 billion US gal)
* Yan Yean 30,000 ML (6.6 billion imp gal; 7.9 billion US gal)
* Greenvale 27,000 ML (5.9 billion imp gal; 7.1 billion US gal)
* Maroondah 22,000 ML (4.8 billion imp gal; 5.8 billion US gal)
* O'Shannassy 3,000 ML (660 million imp gal; 790 million US gal)
* Anakie
* Melton
* Toorourrong

Regional
dams / reservoirs|

* Allen
* Blue Rock
* Bostock
* Dartmouth
* Eildon
* Eppalock
* Glenmaggie
* Korweinguboora
* Laanecoorie
* Lauriston
* Malsmbury
* Marengo
* Moondara
* Painkalac
* Rocklands
* Stony Creek
* Upper Coliban
* Waranga Dam
* West Barwon
* West Gellibrand and Olangolah Reservoirs and No.4 & No.5 Basins
* Wurdee Boluc
* Boga
* Cairn Curran
* Catani
* Guthridge
* Mokoan
* Mulwala
* Nagambie
* Narracan
* William Hovell

Other water sources / facilities|

* Altona Treatment Plant
* Eastern Treatment Plant
* Western Treatment Plant
* Victorian Desalination Plant

Water companies and
government agencies|

* Barwon Water
* Central Highlands Water
* Coliban Water
* East Gippsland Water
* Goulburn–Murray Water
* Goulburn Valley Water
* Greater Western Water
* Melbourne Water
* South East Water (Australia)
* Southern Rural Water
* Yarra Valley Water
* Catchment Management Authority (Victoria)
* Corangamite CMA
* East Gippsland CMA
* Glenelg Hopkins CMA
* Mallee CMA
* Port Phillip and Westernport CMA
* West Gippsland CMA
* Minister for Water (Victoria)

Historical|

* William Davidson
* William Thwaites
* Bittern
* Devilbend
* Terang
* City West Water

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