High inflows to the Snowy Scheme, including Jindabyne catchment, have been ongoing since November.
Based on operational forecasts, if left unmitigated, Lake Jindabyne would reach full supply level (100%) and commence spilling within a week. To avoid uncontrolled spill, Snowy Hydro will again make pre-releases into the Snowy River below Jindabyne Dam from Tuesday 12 April 2022.
Pre-releases will be greater than the environmental releases notified on Snowy Hydro’s website and may change at short notice in response to the weather conditions. Releases could reach flow rates up to 3,000 megalitres per day, similar to the rates that have been released at other times in the past five months.
The outlook as we head towards winter is for wet conditions to continue. Snowy Hydro will continue to pump water from Jindabyne to Geehi Reservoir to be released through Murray 1 and 2 Power stations into the upper Murray River at every opportunity. Further releases to the Snowy River may still be required to avoid uncontrolled releases.
If Lake Jindabyne reaches 100%, it will trigger operation of the spillway gates. Dam safety is paramount at this time and the spillway gates will automatically release water at any time the storage reaches or exceeds 100%.
For the community, the most important message is to stay safe and well-informed. The public can stay updated about flood alerts here:
Bureau of Meteorology
NSW State Emergency Service and
Vic Emergency
For more information about releases into the Snowy River visit
https://www.snowyhydro.com.au/generation/live-data/lake-levels/ and
https://dpie.nsw.gov.au/water/home
Snowy Hydro will continue to keep the community informed about management of water in Lake Jindabyne through its website and social media channels.
DPE Water will engage with landowners subscribed to its SMS service.