History of Rocky Creek Dam

Bundjalung History of Rocky Creek Dam

RCD_Info_Sheet_01.pdf

Brief history of the site/area:

1840 Intact rainforest

1862 Area opened-up for selection

1900 Cedargetters select, cut and remove large trees

1910 Rainforest cleared and converted to pasture for dairying

1911 – 1948 Area used for grazing dairy cattle

1948 Area acquired for public use (water storage)

1950-89 Minimal management – land in transition (Open public space)

1950 – 52 Rocky Creek Dam constructed

1983-1990 Commenced experiments using assisted regeneration on small test plots

1991 – 2000 Large scale assisted regeneration (25 ha) by converting lantana thickets to rainforest

2001-2020 Minimal management public reserve

Main use and management interventions which are likely to have changed the vegetation structure, species composition and regenerative capacity over time.

(1) 1788-1910 Unmodified and intact rainforest;

(2) 1911 Clearing and conversion to pasture/cropland;

(3) 1911 – 1948 Grazing exotic pasture and dairying;

(4) 1949 Land use change to "water catchment";

(5) 1950 Cessation of grazing and agricultural use

(6) 1950-89 Autogenic (spontaneous) regrowth, which at some stage included a dominance of non-native woody species;

(7) 1990-2000 Removal weeds and encouragement of native forest regeneration.

(8) 2001-2020 Management of the regrowth rainforest forest

ROCKY Creek Dam was completed in 1953 to supply drinking water to Lismore, Byron Bay and Bangalow. Construction began in 1949, but the idea for the Rocky Creek Water Scheme first arose in the late 1880s when the area was proclaimed a water reserve .

Rocky Creek Dam is a minor rock fill clay core embankment dam across the Rocky Creek, located upstream of Lismore in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's main purpose is to supply potable water for the region, including Lismore, Ballina, Byron Bay, Evans Head and Alstonville.

Commenced in 1949 and completed in April 1953, the Rocky Creek Dam is a minor dam located in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, situated approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) north of Lismore. The dam is the principal component of the Rous County Council bulk supply network for the region, experiencing population growth.

The dam was built by Dayal Singh under contract to the Rous County Council.

The dam wall is made up of about 80,000 tonnes (79,000 long tons) of rock, soil, clay and concrete and is 28 metres (92 ft) high and 220 metres (720 ft) long. At 100% capacity the dam wall holds back 14,000 megalitres (490×106 cu ft) of water at 187 metres (614 ft) AHD. The surface area of Rocky Lake is 200 hectares (490 acres) and the catchment area is 31 square kilometres (12 sq mi)which includes the Whian Whian State Forest, Nightcap National Park and Whian Whian State Conservation area.The area was once used for logging but is now has a conserved and generally pristine catchment environmentThe uncontrolled spillway is capable of discharging 730 cubic metres per second (26,000 cu ft/s).

The vegetation in the catchment is mainly subtropical rainforest or wet sclerophyll. The vegetation community generally reflects the geology and soils in the area which are derived from the Lamington Volcanics which in this area consists of basalt and thick rhyolite rocks erupted from or associated with the Tweed Volcano. The subtropical rainforest is generally regarded as one of the biggest remnants of the Big Scrub rainforest that once existed over a large part of the surrounding region.

The dam is considered small compared to the size of the population it services. However, the secure yield is high because of the catchment's climate with its consistent high annual rainfall. The nearby Rummery Park rain gauge formerly operated by the Bureau of Meteorology has the highest average annual rainfall in New South Wales. However, in 2003 the lack of rain meant that the water level was at one stage less than twenty per cent.

In 2009 the dam wall was upgraded by ensuring the safety of the dam wall during a maximum probable flood. The upgrade involved the removal of the top of the wall, the installation of a concrete cut-off wall keyed into the impermeable clay core, followed by replacement of the gravel and road over the dam wall.

Water from the dam is used as a potable water supply by Rous County Council to the region. It is the primary water source to the centres of Alstonville, Ballina, Byron Bay, Evans Head, and Lismore. Water is pumped from the lake a short distance to the Nightcap Water Treatment Plant and then this water is provided to the region generally through gravity reticulation.

The water available from the Rocky Creek Dam is usually considered very reliable because of the nature of the catchment and the areas climate. However, in 2003 the water level at the dam dropped below 20% and the region was subject to severe water restrictions. Because of this it was decided by Rous County Council to augment the Rocky Creek Dam supply by developing another source on the Wilsons River near Lismore treating it at an upgraded Nightcap Water Treatment plant at Rocky Creek Dam. The emergency Wilsons River source was completed in 2003 and the fully developed Wilsons River source and upgrade of the Nightcap Water Treatment Plant was completed in 2008.

Cedargetters

In 1840 cedargetters came to the Northern Rivers area chasing the red gold (red cedar trees whose wood was worth more than gold) in order to make their fortunes. A lot of the cedar, which had taken centuries to grow, was originally used to decorate the fine homes of colonial Sydney, being used for doors, wainscoting, architraves and elegant pieces of furniture. The wood was valuable, beautiful, hard, red, and termite-resistant. Cedar logs were hauled out by bullock trains or rolled down sloped grounds, called ‘shoots’ to nearby rivers. From there they were floated to the ocean and surfed to awaiting ships to take to Sydney and overseas. “Cedar-pirates” often stole stock-piled logs. The cedar getters wedged planks into the tree so they could cut above the wet bottom of the tree and also so it would roll uniformly down the hill. By the 1870s there weren’t many tall, centuries old cedar trees left in NSW as they had been felled and sold.

Custodianship and stewardship

In order to have healthy catchments, we all need to be stewards of the land.

Rous County Council's vision of healthy, productive catchments with fully functioning ecosystems that produce clean water can only be achieved by working together with catchment partners that apply an ethic of custodianship and/or stewardship to the land.

The terms 'custodianship' and 'stewardship' encompass a sense of responsibility towards land and the landscape. This embraces the concepts of sustainable natural resource management and managing natural resources within their capabilities (to meet local and broader community values), both now and in the future.

The Widjabul people of the Bundjalung nation are the traditional custodians of the lands, waters, animals and plants of our water catchment areas and maintain a responsibility and deeply felt association with the water and the land of this area.

Local landholders in our drinking water catchments are managing land to protect the health of our waterways, drinking water supply, land, wildlife and people.

Traditional Custodianship and sustainability

Aboriginal people have lived in this country for many thousands of years and developed a sustainable culture and relationship with the land and water. Local Aboriginal people developed cultural practices and understanding specific to their place, their geographic region, their climate and their ecosystems. These cultures developed over a long period of time and were capable of continuing for a long time into the future. From the perspective of 'land management' and relationship between humans and nature, they were successful. They were sustainable.

With European invasion or 'settlement', much of this way of life changed. Traditional knowledge systems and ways of understanding and respecting the natural ecosystems, however, have survived throughout the country.

The Widjabul people of the Bundjalung Nation

The water supply area managed by Rous County Council is set amongst a landscape that is part of the identity, spirituality, connection and resource base for the local Aboriginal community, including tribes of the Bundjalung nation. The Bundjalung nation stretches up the coast to the Logan River, down the coast to the Clarence River, and inland as far as Stanthorpe. Many tribes make up the Bundjalung nation, just like many Aboriginal nations make up the continent of Australia.

The Widjabul people are one of the tribes of the Bundjalung nation. Widjabul country extends from the lower Richmond River area around Coraki to the headwaters of the Richmond catchment in the north, and eastwards to the coastal escarpment areas. The catchment areas for Rocky Creek Dam, Emigrant Creek Dam and the Wilsons River Source all lie in Widjabul country. Rous County Council recognises that the people of the Widjabul country are the original custodians of the lands, waters, animals and plants of our water catchment areas. Despite the significant changes of the past 200 years, the Widjabul people still maintain a responsibility and deeply felt association with the water and the land of this area.

Resources of data and information

https://site.emrprojectsummaries.org/2016/03/06/establishment-of-an-assisted-natural-regeneration-model-for-big-scrub-sub-tropical-rainforest-the-woodford-method/

https://www.aabr.org.au/_upload/MemberPublications/WoodfordRockyCreekFeature.pdf