Hume Dam
 |
| Hume Dam | |
|---|---|
| Location | New South Wales |
| Coordinates | 36°06′30″S 147°01′52″E / 36.10833°S 147.03111°E |
| Type | reservoir |
| Basin countries | Australia |
| Settlements | Tallangatta, Bonegilla, Bellbridge |
Lake Hume is an artificial lake in Australia formed by the Hume Weir east of Albury-Wodonga on the Murray River just downstream of its junction with the Mitta River. The small towns of Tallangatta, Bonegilla and Bellbridge are located on the shores of Lake Hume. The dam wall is constructed of rock covered with clay and other earth, with a concrete spillway. Designed to carry vehicular traffic, the dam wall is 51 metres high and 1,616 metres long, and at 100% capacity can hold 3,000,000 megalitres of water. Water is retained nearly 40 kilometres up both river valleys. Lake Hume holds approximately 5 times the volume of Sydney Harbor.
The Hume Power Station is a 58-megawatt hydro-electric power station installed in the dam wall, and is primarily used for peak-load generation.
Constructed over a 12-year period from 1919 to 1931 with a workforce of thousands, it was extended during the 1950s, and completed in 1961, necessitating the wholesale removal of Tallangatta township and its re-establishment at a new site eight kilometres west of the original.
As it is the furthest downstream of the major reservoirs on the Murray River system, and has the capacity to release water at the fastest rate, Lake Hume is used by the irrigation authorities as the storage of first resort. The reservoir typically falls to less than one-third capacity by March each year, but in normal years refills to at least two-thirds capacity before November, though Australia's highly unpredictable climatic conditions cause these figures to vary quite significantly from year to year. In 2007 Lake Hume fell to a scant 1% capacity, barely more than the water in the two rivers (Murray and Mitta) flowing through on their original paths.
Monitoring of the dam in the early 1990s revealed that the water pressure and leakage had caused the dam to move on its foundations slightly, leading to concerns that the dam was heading for collapse, threatening Albury-Wodonga and the entire Murray basin with it. Authorities denied any short-term threat. Traffic was banned from the spillway, and a large repair job commenced involving, in part, the construction of a secondary earth wall behind the original to take the strain.
The lake is stocked with fish. Most of these are introduced species - redfin and trout. The fishing varies from year to year. It is also popular for water skiing, and several holiday resorts catering for fishing and skiers are dotted around the upper reaches of the lake.