Lake Wivenhoe Water Release

[aussiebasser]

Beginning this week those in charge have decided to lower the level of Lake Wivenhoe to protect all the houses built on the flood plain in Ipswich and Goodna.  Weather forecasters can't tell us what it'll be like this afternoon, however they seem sure we are going to have a wetter than usual summer.  Wivenhoe will be reduced to 75% of half of it's total capacity so that 125% of it's flood mitigation capacity can be used.  Twin Bridges and Savages Crossing will be inundated for 11 to 12 days while this waste of water is carried out.  The public areas that are just coming back to life after the floods will again be decimated by erosion.  Thank you, Rachel Nolan, Paul Pisasale and Paul Tulley.  Let us all hope that finishing the wet season with Wivenhoe at 75% of it's capacity will not impact on available water if next year is not an "unusually wet season" again. 

[Fitzy]

Currently at 80%, dropping it by 5% would do little in the face of January's flood. 5% was going through every 10 minutes.....

Reactionary, save arse, clueless are some words that come to mind.

[Nativeman]

Don't this lot need votes, this might buy them a few...

They have a short memory, we had drought not so long ago...

[aussiebasser]

Annoying is another term.  I have a friend from Japan coming out next week.  I was taking him to the river to catch a good bass.

[UBK]

Hmm I just started getting into the local bass... boooo

[Novice]

Maybe someone in government is a Bass fisherman , and thought the bass population downstream of Twinnies needed a feed of Bony bream

[rayke1938]

Currently at 80%, dropping it by 5% would do little in the face of January's flood. 5% was going through every 10 minutes.....

Reactionary, save arse, clueless are some words that come to mind.

Gary
 Gee you are being conservative my thoughts are a lot more reactionary and radical.
 Cheers
Ray

[Binder]

Don't this lot need votes, this might buy them a few...

They have a short memory, we had drought not so long ago...

Looking out the window now at the brown grass, wilted fruit trees, cracks in the ground, conditions this year are a little different! I dont know what its like up in the catchment, but I doubt its wetter than here!
.
I'm thinking  they should more set their policy on the likely absorption of the catchment. 4 years ago it was that dry dry they reckoned we needed 4 inches before any run off would hit the dam. Last summer if you had spat on the ground at Kenilworth it would have made it all the way to the dam.  I reckon once they reckon less than an inch of rain would produce runoff to the dam, then think about lowering water levels.

Looking outside, I reckon its pretty dry and would need good rain before runoff was likely.

[Fitzy]

Wivenhoe started releasing water from minor flooding in the first hald of October last year, I was there with video camera on hand. Minor flooding continued right through to the big wet in January. Far different conditions from then to now......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cOgP8lgCL4

[elops]

Was pretty much a given that they were going to do this, you would think that a more conservative rate of release over a longer period of time would be a better option.

[Nativeman]

So is the area below the dam wall still closed?

Funny if half of Brisbane was to drive up there to see it spill and the barricades are still up..

[Novice]

So is the area below the dam wall still closed?

Funny if half of Brisbane was to drive up there to see it spill and the barricades are still up..

Yes, the spillway common is still closed . They have done no work in regard to restoring the public access . They have apparently finished the repair work on the channel directly below the spillway though .

Cheers,
Dave.

[Fitzy]

See the link to BOM site below & refer to the chart showing water levels for SEQ in 2011 to same time in 2011

Levels are 13% lower to start with. Dropping 5% from Wivenhoe (which is really only 2.5% of total capacity) is a waste of time.

http://water.bom.gov.au//waterstorage/awris/index.html#urn:bom.gov.au:awris:common:codelist:region.city:brisbane

Wivenhoe is too small to be an effective flood mitigation dam AND a primary water storage. Govt need to realise that this dam, in it's current capacity cannot fullfil both roles.

So, if they want flood mitigation they should keep Wivenhoe emtpy & prepare ALL residents of SEQ for drinking their own urine, OR face the fact that houses built in low laying areas always have been & always will be at risk of being flooded occaionally.

We've only got 200 years of data on rainfall / river flows etc. There's flood erosion marks up the valley 20 meter higher than the best we've recorded,,,,, really, we haven't seen anything yet.

Water is our most precious recource & this token release is simply a touchy feely gesture that would make no difference in a repeat of January 2011; a waste really.

If there was genuine concern for the houses / businesses of low lying areas of Brisbane, then they would halt the destruction of the Lockyer Creek which is in full swing as we speak. This creek is being raped of all vegetation, effectively turning it into a gutter to make the water flow faster. Great for the spud paddocks of Gatton, but this will push water downstream at a higher speed & I'll give you one guess where that water needs to go..... Trees etc help hold to slow the flow from all of the tributaries, which the brisbane catchment has many. If all tributaries were to have the same done, then the warning time of a faster & potentially higher flood could well be reduced many fold.

If they want to truly avoid another Grantham disaster & minimise damage to the rest of SEQ downstream, then true flood mitigation dams on Ma Ma Creek & Murphy's Creek should be built. Or, again, just face up to the fact that floods happen & there's nothing that the best efforts of the good folks at SEQWater, state govt or Johovah can do about it. If worried then be prepared, start building your own arc or just get on with it and see what happens IMHO.

Whatyareckon?


See attachment for Notices to Mariners regarding above mentioned week of water wastage.

[aussiebasser]

A clever thing was done at Grantham following the devastation this year.  They moved the town.  The houses are to be rebuilt on higher ground.  Clever idea that one.  Let's now look at Ipswich.  We can use a house in Goodna as an example.  Owned by a local politician.  You know the bloke, you can't avoid Mr. Tulley, he'd show up at the opening of an envelope.  His house flooded in 1974.  His house flooded again in 2011.  Now he's on his band wagon to stop his house flooding again.  Do you really think he give a flying frogs freckle about anthing else?  Paul Pisasale has been a good Mayor for Ipswich, but he's getting stale and badly need votes.  I guess this will buy him a few.  Rachel Nolan ALP, need I say more?  The state cannot afford to move the houses, and they've forgotten their old rules about building on flood plains.  Floods will happen, houses will be inundated and people will die.  Until our leaders accept that the only way to stop this is to move people to higher ground it will keep happening.
Letting 5% (2.5%)out of Wivenhoe is about as effective as asking everyone in Brisbane to flush their toilets at the same time to lower the level at Mt. Crosby!

[Nativeman]

You can see the release of the water on the webcam, never knew there was one there. Nothing happening yet??

Click on this link, http://seqwater.com.au/public/source-store-treat-supply/dams/wivenhoe-dam

Right hand top of the page there is a link the webcam, you can take a turn at the cam, zooming in and out. Nothing happening yet though..