News

ACTEW Corporation today received the final green light to begin construction of the Enlarged Cotter Dam with Federal Minister for the Environment, Heritage, and Arts, Peter Garrett AM, approving with conditions the Public Environment Report (PER) for the project.

“Receiving this final planning approval is a major milestone and means we can get on with the job of building this critical piece of infrastructure for Canberra and the region,” said Mr Mark Sullivan, ACTEW’s Managing Director.

The construction of the Enlarged Cotter Dam is one of the largest infrastructure projects undertaken in the history of the ACT. ACTEW has invested significantly in extensive research and analysis over many years, and has been proactive in meeting the comprehensive planning and environmental requirements of approval.

“To obtain planning approval in just over eighteen months has been an enormous task for both ACTEW and the number of government regulators involved. ACTEW acknowledges and thanks the many agencies within the ACT Government and the Commonwealth Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts for their significant role,” said Mr Sullivan.

“The robust planning approval process provides comfort to government and the community that all aspects of the project, from the very important protection of the environment through to safety and traffic management have been developed to the highest standard.”

ACTEW started talking with the community about this project during its water supply study Future Water Options in 2005. Since that time ACTEW has continued to involve the community in this project, most recently through the establishment of the Friends of Cotter group.

“Community support for this project has been a key factor in achieving this approval. We look forward to continuing to involve the community through an education program and the opportunity to view key stages of the construction,” said Mr Mark Sullivan.

Construction of the Enlarged Cotter Dam is due to commence in early November with the dam scheduled for completion by December 2011.

The project required assessment by the Commonwealth Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999. It was deemed a ‘controlled action' under this Act due to its likely impact on listed threatened species. Conditions to the approval include the regulation of environmental and downstream flows and the management of fish species.

ACT planning approval for the Enlarged Cotter Dam was granted on 16 September 2009, just twelve months after ACTEW lodged a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) with the ACT Planning and Land Authority. This EIS was the first to be assessed under the new ACT Planning and Development Act (2007).

The Enlarged Cotter Dam involves building an enlarged dam downstream of the existing one to increase the Cotter’s capacity from the current 4 gigalitres (GL) to around 78 GL; almost 20 times its current size.

Working closely with ActewAGL, ACTEW has formed an alliance with major companies Abigroup, John Holland and GHD to deliver the project.