Concept development has been completed  for a $3.4 million NSW State Water Corporation project to address cold water pollution from Burrendong Dam, near Wellington.

 

The Burrendong Dam project involves constructing a floating curtain temperature control structure to enable warmer surface water to be released downstream into the Macquarie River.

 

Cold water pollution can occur when cold water from the bottom of the dam is released into the river, which can have a negative impact on native fish species.

 

The floating curtain is built around the intake tower and sits slightly below the water level, allowing warmer surface water to flow over the sides of the curtain and into the intake tower. It is then released downstream through the outlet valves.

 

"The curtain will move up and down as the water level of the dam varies through the use of a chain and pulley mechanism, which means the system will continue to work regardless of the level of the water in the dam.

 

The project is half funded by the NSW and Australian Government's under the NSW Rivers Environmental Restoration Program (RERP) and half by State Water customers.

 

The project construction is scheduled for 2013 and is expected to take one year.

 

RERP is jointly funded by the NSW Government and the Australian Government's Water for the Future initiative and aims to arrest the decline of wetlands through water recovery, effective management of environmental water and the sustainable management of our wetlands.