Copeton Dam marks 50 years since its official opening yesterday, Friday, 23 October, and Inverell Mayor Kate Dight says many people do not realise how much the community relies on it. The dam supports the town’s domestic water supply, its major industries, its flood protection and its favourite place to relax.
Construction began in March 1968, and the main wall was finished in March 1973. The nine radial gates on the spillway were installed in 1976, the same year Neville Wran officially opened the dam.
The rock embankment wall is 1.4 kilometres long and 113 metres high. The lake covers 46 square kilometres and can hold 1,346 gigalitres. The dam’s main purpose is to supply irrigation, stock and household needs in the Gwydir Valley, as well as environmental flows to the Gwydir Wetlands.
Cr Dight said some of her colleagues at Inverell Shire Council still remember opening day, including the flags that were strung across the new dam wall.
“It was just such a big event,” said Cr Mayor Dight.
Old construction photos have been popping up this week on a public Facebook history group for the Inverell area. Locals have been recognising relatives who worked on the project.
“It’s a wonderful asset to have in our community,” said Cr Dight.
She said the dam is about much more than a large body of water.
“It’s also about the flood mitigation that it actually provides to the whole region,” said Cr Dight.
Cr Dight said the strength of the Inverell economy rests on agriculture and the businesses that grow from it. She named the abattoir, Boss Engineering and the pet food factory as three major employers that have been important for a very long time. All of them need water.
“Without the security the dam provides, it would really put to question what sort of ag industry we could have long-term sustainability for,” said Cr Dight.
She said Inverell is not on a major highway, so people visit for a reason.
“To have such a secure water supply here really is a big point of attraction,” said Cr Dight.
Inverell Shire Council holds a high security licence with WaterNSW, which owns the dam, to take water for the town’s domestic supply. Cr Dight said this means the council can always get access to that water for domestic use.
“We are the same as any other water user right across the Murray-Darling Basin,” she said.
Cr Dight said Copeton is the only large, significant water storage in the northern part of the basin. Only about 12 per cent of the basin’s water comes from the north, which limits the chance to build big dams there.
“We do not have great dam storage in the north,” said Cr Dight.
She said the dam holds so much water that it still has plenty left even when levels are very low. The dam is currently 54 per cent full, which Mayor Dight said was good news heading into summer. She said the Inverell region had received only about one third of its annual rainfall up to 1 October.
“Unless you’ve got strong water security, you just will not develop,” said Cr Dight.
With Copeton located just 20 minutes from Inverell, it is a popular spot for locals and visitors alike.
Inverell Council built the Copeton Northern Foreshores about five years ago in a $5.2 million project. It includes a hall, walking paths, viewing platforms, a children’s splash park and upgraded amenities. The foreshores are also home to a recently upgraded holiday park.
Cr Dight said then general manager Paul Henry project managed the work. Gwydir Shire Council has also developed facilities at the dam, and she said Gwydir residents use it just as heavily as Inverell people.
“And now there are thousands of people on a public holiday weekend,” said Cr Dight. “It’s truly a public space for all to enjoy.”
Cr Dight said the dam also offers year-round cod fishing, which the region’s rivers cannot, further promoting the area as a tourist destination.
Mayor Dight said council has no plans to mark the milestone because it does not own the dam.
“Unfortunately It’s not really up for council to be providing any celebrations; we don’t own it,” said Cr Dight.
She said she had not heard of WaterNSW planning anything for the anniversary either.
Cr Dight said she hoped the anniversary would remind people what the dam has given the region, particularly after years of scrutiny of dams.
“I don’t think people really value what security it has given us,” she said.
She said that security reaches beyond the shire’s balance sheet.
“It’s not just our economy, it’s our community,” said Mayor Dight.
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