Hydro Tasmania’s Gordon Dam has turned 50, marking a key milestone in the state’s hydropower history.
On 25 November 1974, the final bucket of concrete was poured at Gordon Dam in Tasmania’s southwest, creating the biggest arch dam in Australia.
Hydro Tasmania Acting CEO, Erin van Maanen, said Gordon Dam was a feat of engineering and innovation that established Tasmania as a global leader in hydropower.
“Today we honour the people who brought this visionary project to life. Their legacy is the renewable energy that powers the lives of Tasmanians and underpins our economy,” Ms van Maanen said.
Hydro Tasmania said that together, Lake Gordon and Lake Pedder make up Hydro Tasmania’s largest water storage and the largest in Australia.
The Gordon Power Station generates around 13 per cent of Tasmania’s electricity needs every year.
“These are multi-seasonal storages, we can build them up and access water over years. They play a very important role in Tasmania’s hydropower system and are critical to meeting the growing demand for energy in Tasmania and providing energy security during dry periods,” Ms van Maanen said.
Phil Reed was the crane dogman who carefully directed the crane operator to pour both the first and last bucket of concrete.
“It was fantastic watching that last bucket be poured at Gordon,” said Mr Reed.
“Everyone had worked so hard for so long – we’d been pouring concrete for almost three years.”
Ms van Maanen acknowledged the significance of the history of the Gordon-Pedder Scheme, particularly in relation to the flooding of Lake Pedder, which divided public opinion.
“The lessons resonate today in how Hydro Tasmania prioritises and cares for the environment, and how we engage with the community,” she said.
Key facts and figures:
- Chief engineer Dr Sergio Giudici designed the dam (his grandson, Oliver Giudici works at Hydro Tasmania and is the fourth generation of his family to work at the business).
- Gordon Dam is the tallest arch dam in Australia at 140m tall – more than double the height of Wrest Point Casino.
- The dam contains 154,000m3 of concrete, which is enough to create about 5700 replicas of the Statue of Liberty.
- The first bucket of concrete was poured on 19 January 1972 and the last on 25 November 1974.
- Before the dam could be built, hundreds of workers cut an 80km road from Maydena to the dam site, the first to ever go through rugged southwest Tasmania. Roadwork started in 1964.
- Towards the end of 1967, construction of Strathgordon Village was started to house workers – it had a shopping centre, church, butcher and baker.
- Hundreds of workers contributed to building Gordon Dam, including many highly skilled migrants.
- At its peak there were 2000 residents at Strathgordon Village, including wives and children.
- The village even had a heated swimming pool – at the time it was the only heated pool in the state.
