Leslie Harrison Dam

Leslie Harrison Dam
The dam, in 2014
Leslie Harrison Dam
Location of the dam in Queensland
Interactive map of Leslie Harrison Dam
CountryAustralia
LocationSouth East Queensland
Coordinates27°31′41″S 153°10′49″E / 27.52806°S 153.18028°E / -27.52806; 153.18028
PurposePotable water supply
StatusOperational
Opening date
  • 1968 (1968)
  • 1984 (1984) (raised/gates installed)
  • 2014 (gates removed)
OperatorSEQ Water
Dam and spillways
Type of damEmbankment dam
ImpoundsTingalpa Creek
Height25 m (82 ft)
Length525 m (1,722 ft)
Dam volume315×10^3 m3 (11.1×10^6 cu ft)
Spillway type
Spillway capacity1,450 m3/s (51,000 cu ft/s)
Reservoir
CreatesTingalpa Reservoir
Total capacity13,206 ML (10,706 acre⋅ft)
Catchment area88 km2 (34 sq mi)
Surface area470 ha (1,200 acres)
Website
seqwater.com.au

The Leslie Harrison Dam is an earth-fill embankment dam across the Tingalpa Creek, located in the South East region of Queensland, Australia. The main purpose of the dam is for potable water supply of the Redland City in Brisbane.[1][2] The impounded reservoir is called Tingalpa Reservoir.

The dam was named after Robert Leslie Harrison, a Queensland parliamentarian who died in April 1966.

Overview

The dam is located between the suburbs of Capalaba, Chandler and Burbank, approximately 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) southeast of Brisbane. The primary inflow of the reservoir is the Tingalpa Creek, not far above its mouth at Waterloo Bay.[2] The dam is one of a number of dams connected to the South East Queensland Water Grid, and the dam provides approximately 20% of the water supply for Redland City.

Completed in 1968, the earthfill dam structure is 25 metres (82 ft) high and 535 metres (1,755 ft) long. The resultant Tingalpa Reservoir has capacity of 13,206 megalitres (10,706 acre⋅ft) when full, drawn from a catchment area of 88 square kilometres (34 sq mi) that includes much of the northern slopes of the Venman Bushland National Park. The dam reservoir surface area covers 470 hectares (1,200 acres).[1][3][2] Controlled vertical lift gates were added to the spillway in 1984 to increase water supply to the region, and removed in 2014 to improve dam safety.[4][5] The spillway has a discharge capacity of 1,450 cubic metres per second (51,000 cu ft/s).[1]

Initially managed by the Redland City Council, management of the dam was transferred to SEQ Water in July 2008 as part of a water security project in the South East Queensland region, known as the South East Queensland Water Grid.[6]

Dam improvement program

In 1984, the dam wall was raised and gates were installed,[4] and in 2014, work began on improving the safety of the dam after SEQ Water completed a major investigation of its operating dams,[7] which included draining the dam to approximately 50% capacity.[8]

External videos
Spillway gates removed, 2015

In 2012–13, an independent review of SEQ Water's 26 referable dams found improvements were needed at a number of dams, including Leslie Harrison, to meet the revised Queensland Dam Safety Guidelines.[7] The detailed design for the upgrade of Leslie Harrison Dam was completed and included widening and strengthening the dam wall, anchoring the spillway, improving resilience to extreme weather events and earthquakes, and not returning the gates to the spillway.[5]

Recreation

There are no plans to introduce recreation on the Tingalpa Reservoir. In 2014, SEQ Water engaged experts to conduct a water quality study and develop a screening tool to improve understanding of the impact recreation has on water quality in drinking water lakes. The complex and comprehensive study was completed in 2016 and, using a screening tool, determined that given the reservoir's role as a drinking water source for the Redlands, recreation cannot be considered because of unacceptable risks to water quality.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Register of Large Dams Australia-2015" (Excel. Requires download. Row 293). ANCOLD. January 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  2. ^ a b c Harrison, Rod; James, Ernie; Sully, Chris; Classon, Bill; Eckermann, Joy (2008). Queensland Dams. Bayswater, Victoria: Australian Fishing Network. ISBN 978-1-86513-134-4.
  3. ^ "Leslie Harrison Dam". Water supply: Dams and weirs. SEQ Water. 2014. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  4. ^ a b "Flashback: Leslie Harrison Dam". Redland City Bulletin. 2 April 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  5. ^ a b "Leslie Harrison Dam". SEQ Water. Retrieved 3 February 2018.
  6. ^ Hurst, Daniel (7 July 2009). "Water funds slash debt". The Bayside Bulletin. Retrieved 21 April 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  7. ^ a b Moore, Tony (10 April 2014). "Six dams need safety upgrades: Seqwater". Brisbane Times. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  8. ^ Kerr, Judith (28 July 2014). "Leslie Harrison Dam drains: Spot the difference". Redland City Bulletin. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
  9. ^ "Recreation guides". SEQ Water.