Lake Somerset
| Lake Somerset | |||||||||||
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| Coordinates | 27 ° 6 '52 " S , 152 ° 33' 25" O | ||||||||||
| Data on the structure | |||||||||||
| Construction time: | 1933 to 1953 | ||||||||||
| Building volume: | 203 000 m³ | ||||||||||
| Crown length: | 305 m | ||||||||||
| Power plant output: | 4 MW | ||||||||||
| Data on the reservoir | |||||||||||
| Altitude (at congestion destination ) | 97 m | ||||||||||
| Water surface | 42.1 km² | ||||||||||
| Reservoir length | 52 km | ||||||||||
| Reservoir width | 7 km | ||||||||||
| Total storage space : | 380–904 million m³ | ||||||||||
| Catchment area | 1 503 km² | ||||||||||
The Somerset Dam is a dam in the southeast of the Australian state of Queensland . At the Somerset Dam is Stanley River dammed. The dam was completed in 1953 and serves to protect against flash floods and to store water for the cities of Brisbane and Ipswich . A small power plant with 4 MW output is also operated with the water.
Design and operation
The reservoir has a storage volume of 904 million m³ when fully blocked. Under normal circumstances, 380 million m³ of this is reserved for the drinking water supply, but the reservoir can temporarily absorb another 524 million m³ of water from flash floods. The gravity dam is 305 m long and contains 203,000 m³ of concrete.
The reservoir is operated by SEQ Water . A fill level of 90% is ideal to keep evaporation low. In the event of overcrowding, water is drained into the lower lying Lake Wivenhoe to keep the water level in Lake Somerset constant.
construction
The lower valley of the Stanley River was first proposed as a location for a reservoir by Henry Somerset, owner of the Caboonah settlement , after the great flood in Brisbane in 1893, which left great damage to all residents of the Brisbane River . A commission then recommended 1928 Stanley Klamm for the construction of the dam, but only in 1933 accepted Forgan Smith, the then Governor of Queensland, the project as a good way of job creation for people in the Great Depression had lost their jobs.
Construction began in 1935. Huts and other facilities had to be built for the workers so that 1,000 construction workers and their families could be attracted to the area. In 1942, when the dam was almost finished, the workers were needed as soldiers in World War II . It was not until 1948 that work on the dam could be continued. In 1953 the construction work was finally finished and the dam was put into operation. But it was not officially named after Henry Somerset until 1958 and the remaining work, e.g. B. at the power plant completed.
Recreational facilities
There are two approaches to Lake Somerset, Kirkleigh and The Spit . Both places have wide, concrete slipways for boats and facilities for day trippers. Camping and motorhome parking is permitted in Kirkleigh and below the dam in Somerset Park in the small town of Somerset . On good days, both campsites (in Kirkleigh: 2,200 spaces and in Somerset Park 800 spaces) can be full. There are 30 km of navigable waterways on the reservoir, but you need a permit if you want to steer a motorboat on the lake.
Sport fishing
The reservoir is considered good fishing water, one of the five best in Queensland. One finds temperate perch , tiger fish , the Australian freshwater herring ( Nematalosa erebi , bony bream), the Tauwels (eel-tailed catfish) Australian lungfish and Leichhardts bonytongues . To fish you need a special permit (Stocked Impoundment Permit) .
Web links
- Current water level in Lake Somerset (English)
- Information for sport fishermen on Lake Somerset. Map, pictures and water level reports (English)
- Photos from Lake Somerset. National Library of Australia
- Natural Landmarks at Lake Somerset Tourism
Individual evidence
- ^ Brian Williams: Somerset Dam Water Released as Deluge Delivers Supply Bonus . In: The Courier Mail . News Limited. April 4, 2009. Retrieved April 27, 2008.
- ↑ a b c d e Environmental Protection Agency (Queensland): Heritage Trails of the Great South East . State of Queensland, 2000, ISBN 0-7345-1008-X , pp. 49-50.
- ↑ a b c d Rod Harrison, Ernie James, Chris Sully, Bill Classon, Joy Eckermann: Queensland Dams . Australian Fishing Network, Bayswater, Victoria 2008, ISBN 978-1-86513-134-4 , pp. 138-139.
- ↑ Melanie Maeseele: Campers stream into full dam sites . In: Ipswich Queensland Times . APN News & Media. April 8, 2009. Retrieved April 29, 2008.
- ^ Sweetwater Fishing Australia - Saratoga
- ↑ Fishing in Queensland Dams? You may need a permit . Government of Queensland ( Memento of the original from August 29, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
