The area that would be inundated as a consequence of the proposed raising of the existing Warragamba Dam wall is almost entirely located within the Wollondilly local government area.
Not only would the proposal not prevent major flooding along the Hawkesbury-Nepean, it would also cause irreparable damage to the area’s unique indigenous heritage and native species.
These are just some of the reasons Wollondilly Shire Mayor Matt Gould has been opposed to plans for the raising of the Warragamba Dam wall by 14 metres.
He has expressed his views once again in the wake of a government announcement last week that raising the wall had been declared a “critical state significant infrastructure project’’.
Mayor Gould said that this removed the ability for the project’s planning approval decisions to be scrutinised by the community in court under NSW Planning and Environmental law.
“Rather conveniently, this announcement comes two weeks after findings by the NSW Government’s legal auditors were publicly released, noting serious claims regarding conflicts of interests identified by the auditors,’’ he said.
“Everyone who has objectively looked at the issue can see how highly flawed the EIS process for the dam wall raising has been.
“There has been criticism from groups as diverse as the Upper House Committee on the Dam Raising, environmental, indigenous and flooding experts, and even a former deputy commissioner of the SES.
“Instead of worrying about how to best shield itself from valid scrutiny of its flawed EIS process, the state government should focus on more immediate ways to manage the flood risk on the Hawkesbury-Nepean and drop the water level in Warragamba Dam now.
“Dropping the water level and offsetting it with greater use of the desalination plant is an option that has not been properly considered and has been advocated for by a variety of experts,” he said.
“This would allow the government to redirect the billions of dollars that would be spent on raising the dam wall into flood evacuation routes and road infrastructure which is desperately needed for at-risk communities across Greater Western Sydney, and which would also improve transport links on a day to day basis.’’
