| Serpentine Dam | |
|---|---|
&sq=Google&lang=en&file=File:Serpentine_dam_wa_gnangarra.jpg) Dam wall and offtake tower. Water level in picture is 27% of capacity. | |
| Location | Serpentine, Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale, Western Australia |
| Coordinates | 32°24′15″S 116°05′58″E / 32.40417°S 116.09944°E |
| Opening date | 1961 |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Height | 55 m (180 ft) |
| Width (base) | 350.5 m (1,150 ft) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Reservoir |
| Total capacity | 137,700,000 m3 (4.86×109 cu ft) |
| Catchment area | 664 km2 (256 sq mi) |
| Surface area | 5.01 km (3.11 mi) |
| |
| Official name | Serpentine Dam |
| Designated | 26 September 2003 |
| Reference no. | 4174 |
The Serpentine Dam is a major water supply dam for Perth, Western Australia. The dam is used to store water that is released at a controlled rate to regulate the level in the Serpentine Pipehead Dam reservoir, which in turn feeds water to the metropolitan trunk main network depending on demand. Construction of the dam was completed in 1961.
The Serpentine Dam is one of the 15 dams, some of which have since been decommissioned, that have been built in Western Australia since the 1920s, along with the Serpentine Pipehead Dam. It was built as part of the Integrated Water Supply System (IWSS), the largest scheme currently managed by the Water Corporation, which provides water for over two million people in Perth, Mandurah, and other Western Australian regions.[1] Serpentine Dam is connected to the Serpentine Pipehead Dam, which stores water and desalinated water from the Serpentine Dam and other dams nearby for later use.[2]
The Serpentine Dam is an important water source because the Perth metropolitan area depends on it as a strategic water source, supplying on average 39 gigalitres (1.4 billion cubic feet) per year, with an additional 2 gigalitres (71 million cubic feet) from the natural flows into the Serpentine Pipehead Dam.[3] According to the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation, as of 2017 the Serpentine Dam alone has supplied about 4300 households with water annually since 2010.[2]: 5
- ^ "Integrated water supply scheme". www.watercorporation.com.au. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- ^ a b Managing releases for the Serpentine River (PDF). Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (Serpentine River allocation statement). Perth: Government of Western Australia. November 2017. ISBN 978-1-925524-44-4. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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