Dam wall ‘ no cause for alarm’

A SAFETY inspection of Paluma Dam has found the metal spillway is rusting and needs replacement or repair.

Townsville City Council confirmed the problem yesterda, after calling tenders for the work.

In a statement, a council spokesman indicated there was no cause for alarm and said the dam wall was in “perfect working order”.

“The proposed works are on the spillway connected to the Paluma Dam — not the dam itself, which is in perfect working order,” the spokesman said.

“The gate on the spillway needs some preventive repairs completed, including removing rust from the metal section. As part of the project, the spillway will be raised by another 150mm — which means more water can be stored in the dam.”

According to a tender summary, recent dam safety inspections identified that the spillway steel weir had deteriorated to an extent that intervention was required to prevent further deterioration.

The works will consist of water diversion, if required, and steel spillway removal and replacement.

Other work includes site establishment and environmental protection specific to the site, which is in the World Heritage Wet Tropics area.

It is understood the council is considering further work to the spillway slab and steelwork. The dam is a drinking water storage facility for Townsville in the Paluma Range National Park.

For part of the year water flowing from Mount Spec is collected and filtered at the Crystal Creek intake and then piped under gravity to Townsville.