Wilcannia Weir Replacement Project

Water Infrastructure NSW recently completed a series of geotechnical and geophysical assessments at the new weir site. The soil samples and data collected will be assessed to help inform the weir’s final design.

The assessments involved drilling boreholes on the northern and southern bank of the Darling-Baaka River to analyse ground conditions, as well as on-water assessments to determine the riverbed and sedimentary profile in-and-around the new weir location. These on-water assessments were conducted by boat using non-intrusive acoustic and seismic technology.

A local Wilcannia community member attended the works to provide cultural monitoring.

Further studies and surveys are planned to investigate in greater detail the current and new weir sites, and some parts of Union Bend Road to inform the final weir design. These further assessments are expected to be completed in August 2023.

The sewage pumps for the stormwater mitigation system recently arrived in the country. They are currently being assembled at the supplier’s facility in Western Sydney and are scheduled to be delivered to Wilcannia in late August 2023.

Once installed, they will provide automatic back-up (via a diesel-powered engine) to the existing submersible pumps - should they fail at any point.

The installation of the stormwater mitigation system is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2024.

The sewage system upgrade, when completed, will prevent instances of raw sewage flowing into the Darling Baaka river system through the stormwater system.

Water Infrastructure NSW is currently developing the final Community River Place design.

The need for a Community River Place was identified during previous stakeholder consultation with the Wilcannia community. It was subsequently detailed in the Environmental Impact Statement process in 2022.

The site will provide an important recreational area for the local community, where they can gather to share stories, fish and swim.

Water Infrastructure NSW will be holding design development sessions in Wilcannia with community representatives over the coming months.

The purpose of these sessions is to discuss the concept design for the site and to get community feedback. This feedback will provide vital inputs for the final design.

Water Infrastructure NSW is progressing additional site investigations at the southern end of Union Bend Rd after Stage One (1) of the Union Bend Road upgrades were unexpectedly halted earlier in 2022 due to wet weather.

These assessments are being undertaken to capture existing utilities, emergency bore pump units and inground pits. This information is needed to incorporate a vehicle turning area at the southern end of the road.

The road upgrade will support the vehicles and machinery required to build the new weir structure. It will eventually become the main access road to the new weir and to the Community River Place recreational area.