Damning the Clutha Mata-Au

The saga of hydro-dams on the Clutha River. The Roxburgh dam, commissioned in 1956, now has a sediment-filled reservoir. The Clyde dam, commissioned in 1992, was mistakenly built on an active fault-line, and was plagued with serious landslide issues and cost overruns. Music credit: 'Unsuffer Me,' by Lucinda Williams.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Clutha River
• dams
• hydropower
• Clyde dam
• Dunstan reservoir
• Cromwell Junction
• Cromwell Gap
• Cromwell
• Roxburgh
• Roxburgh dam
• Roxburgh reservoir
• Lowburn
• Earthquake
• Landslide

[MrZzr12]

All those who dont want hydro power please send your name and address to the Govt so they can send someone to cut off your power, that is if you are really concerned or just full of wind about the damage Hydro Dams cause.Idiots like those against Hydro are also against wind farms so where does the power come from, and who pays.

[finnraft]

@MrZzr12 Local windfarms and distributed energy are great solutions. Even small hydro can be great on tributaries, but large hydro is hugely problematic and costly. Large dams have limited lifespans (@ 80 years in NZ) because of sediment transport. The Roxburgh reservoir has silted up. We had a major flood in 1999 in Alexandra because of that. Clyde dam is also silting up. Decommissioning can cost more than a new dam, and who pays? Answer, NOT the power companies! It will be the taxpayer. YOU!

[Pihasanddunes1]

Very interesting video, learned some info I wasn't aware of. Thanks for posting. Great choice of soundtrack too.

[finnraft]

Thanks for your positive comment. If you'd to find out more about large dams in NZ, why they are so problematic, and the alternatives, please check out my other videos "NZ, Addicted to Dams?" and "NZ Rivers Threatened By Dams".

[finnraft]

The Roxburgh dam is consented until 2042, but the sediment issue may require decommissioning to begin before then. As for power, there are 17000MW in the Cook Strait, according to Neptune Power, and it's more reliable than hydro. NZ only needs 12000MW. Sadly, most of our decision-makers are stuck in the hydro-era, and vested interests are pushing hard. The only hope is to educate the public ...

Your footage of Sargood's and the Gap is invaluable. Thanks so much for posting!

[Pihasanddunes1]

@finnraft. Yeah, will do. Thanks.

[blueduck12]

Terrific! Good to to see those pics of the big rapids under Roxburgh. They should demolish Roxburgh and build a wind farm somewhere west of the river, and go for Option 5 too.