page_title: Wyangala Dam
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Wyangala Dam / Location and features / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Wyangala Dam, New South Wales. This view was taken from the northwest, and shows the rear of the dam wall in the middle distance, with the coffer dam (normally completely submerged) immediately to the right. The picture dates to July 2003, and shows the effects of sustained drought on Lake Wyangala, which stops several kilometres short of the main spillway.
context_page_description: Wyangala Dam is a major gated rock fill with clay core embankment and gravity dam with eight radial gates and a concrete chute spillway across the Lachlan River, located in the south-western slopes region of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's purpose includes flood mitigation, hydro-power, irrigation, water supply and conservation. The impounded reservoir is called Lake Wyangala.
context_section_description: The name Wyangala is said to originate from an indigenous Wiradjuri word of unknown meaning and is the name of Wyangala Station, one of the properties flooded by Lake Wyangala waters when construction of the dam was completed in 1935. The Wyangala Station homestead site, which was originally settled by the Newham family, is under the water level and can only be seen when the dam is close to being dry. The small settlement of Wyangala, located downstream of the dam wall, was established to house workers during the dam construction.
  The current earth and rock wall was constructed between 1961 and 1971 due to fears that the original dam wall was beginning to lift away from its base, and as a result,  would not be able to withstand a major flood. The original dam wall can be seen when the water level is around 30 per cent of the reservoir's catchment capacity.
  In 2008, water entitlements were down to just 10 per cent of normal availability. Some inflows to the reservoir later in the year allowed restrictions for high security licence holders to be relaxed. In late 2009, drought had reduced the water storage level to 4.5 per cent of the reservoir's capacity.
caption: Wyangala Dam and Lake Wyangala,during a period of sustained drought in 2003
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