Snowy River Hydro Scheme By Nikki Kube

The Snowy river hydro scheme consists of sixteen major dams, seven power stations, a pumping station and 225 kilometers of tunnels, pipelines and aqueducts. This makes it one of the most complex hydro-electric schemes in the world. Only two per cent of the entire construction is visible above the ground. The project first began in 1949, and was finished in 1974, taking 25 years to complete. It was built with the purpose of collecting water from melted snow and rain in the Snowy Mountains. This water once used to flow into the Snowy River but is now being diverted through tunnels in the mountains to be stored in dams.

More than 100,000 people came from over 30 countries to take part in this enormous project, with up to 7,300 people working on it at one time. With so many people coming to Australia many new towns were created, and existing ones flourished. It encouraged s many skilled workers to came to Australia, and was a huge part of the nation building process. The majority of these workers stayed on to live in Australia after the project was finished.

The Snowy mountains hydro scheme is situated in the Kosciusko National park. When dams were built some habitats for plants and animals were flooded. The scheme which includes diverting and storing water has had a huge impact on the course of the river, and other surrounding rivers.

The scheme was completed on time due to so many workers, and within the budget. The project ended up costing approximately $820 million.