Glen Niven Dam Upgrade

The FKG Group was engaged by the Queensland Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy to increase the spillway capacity of the Glen Niven Dam and upgrade the dam embankment in order to meet modern engineering standards and legislative requirements.

Originally constructed in 1915, the upgrade works included site establishment, clearing and grubbing, drilling and blasting, 1.5m downstream embankment raise, installation of a blanket and chimney filter, concrete works for the embankment end walls, and installation of seepage monitoring weirs at the toe of the embankment.

During the project, the team carried out a blast for excavation of approximately 6,000m3 of granite material to form part of an enlarged primary spillway for the dam. The blasted material was then processed and repurposed as scour protection in the terminal section of the primary spillway, a rock deflection wall on the auxiliary spillway, rip rap on the upstream face of the embankment, and general fill.

The water supply dam is a nine metre high earthfill embankment structure with a full supply level volume of 180 mega litres and is situated within the local government area of Southern Downs Regional Council, on Four Mile Creek.