The Lake Macdonald Dam (Six Mile Creek Dam) is scheduled to be upgraded as part of Seqwater’s Dam Improvement Program.
It will be the first major safety upgrade to the dam since it was raised in 1980.
Like all major infrastructure, dams are regularly assessed and upgraded to comply with modern engineering guidelines and national standards.
The safety upgrade will involve; temporarily lowering the water level, catching and relocating aquatic fauna, removing the existing dam and spillway structure, rebuilding a new dam and spillway in the same location.
The early works activities for the project are currently underway and construction for the replacement of the road bridge to the Noosa Water Treatment Plant is expected to commence this month.
Work to upgrade the existing Noosa Water Treatment Plant bridge will also commence shortly.
The work will involve constructing a new bridge downstream of the existing structure and undertaking a safety upgrade of the road entrance to the Water Treatment Plant.
The existing access bridge to the Noosa Water Treatment Plant is nearing the end of its lifespan and needs replacing.
Work to replace the existing bridge has been brought forward to ensure that a new bridge is in position ahead of the main construction work on the Lake Macdonald Dam Upgrade in 2021.
The intersection and bridge at the junction of Lake Macdonald Drive and the Noosa Water Treatment Plant access road will be the main entry and exit for the Lake Macdonald Dam Upgrade construction work.
The new bridge will cater for future operational requirements and construction activities, providing safe passage to haul trucks and heavy equipment as well as ongoing access to the Water Treatment Plant.
A design and construct contract has been awarded, and the contractor has now mobilised to the site.
The construction of the new bridge and improvements to the access road are expected to take up to six months, subject to weather and other unforeseen circumstances.
The old Noosa Water Treatment Plant bridge will be decommissioned and removed on completion of the Lake Macdonald Dam Upgrade Project, in late 2023.
To enable the construction of the Noosa Water Treatment Plant bridge, the public access to the bridge will temporarily close Kookaburra Park from early – November 2020.
Multi-use trails four and seven will remain open during the project, however the access points to these trails will change.
As part of the project, Seqwater have been working collaboratively with Council and Queensland Parks and Wildlife to invest in improvements to the Noosa Trail Network.
This work will ensure that the public can continue to enjoy horse riding, hiking and mountain biking in approved areas.
