Shoalhaven City Council’s Natural Resources and Floodplain Manager has advised that the entrance to Tabourie Lake should be opened mechanically on April 11th in anticipation of further rain.
The Council sent machinery to excavate an entrance opening after receiving clearance from National Parks in relation to threatened shorebird species.
The water level is currently at 1.18mAHD at the Bureau of Meteorology gauge (BOM) and 1.15mAHD at the Manly Hydraulics (MHL) gauge.
The entrance has been opened to prevent minor flooding and low level persistent inundation which causes some amenity issues in the area.
However, opening the entrance would not prevent medium to major floods should significant rainfall occur in the catchment.
The public are reminded to stay outside the work area and keep away from the edges of the dug channel and eroding banks following opening as these areas are very unstable and unsafe.
Council staff will continue to monitor the entrance over the coming weeks.
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Press Release, April 15, 2014