Fish investigations associated with Snowy 2.0 - Snowy Hydro Ltd. (Assignment 1) (2017-2020)

Funding

Snowy Hydro Ltd., $61,647

Investigators/researchers

Dr Lee Baumgartner, Dr Luiz Silva, Dr Nathan Ning and Dr Craig Boys (NSW DPI)

Research Theme

Biodiversity Conservation

Description

The Snowy 2.0 project is a pumped-hydro expansion of Australia’s the Snowy Scheme which will supercharge existing generation and large-scale storage capabilities. As part of the planning for the expansion, ILWS researchers have partnered with Snowy Hydro and NSW DPI to perform a risk assessment of fish-related impacts associated with the project.

The work specifically looked into the risk that some fish species will be transferred and to perform a preliminary scan of potential mitigation options.

The ILWS work was reported in the project’s feasibility study report that was presented to the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet towards the end of 2017 and is now available on the Snowy 2.0 website. The outcome of the feasibility study was that Snowy 2.0 was a viable prospect provided all risks were adequately managed.

ILWS will continue to work with Snowy Hydro as the project enters the next phase.

Outputs

Snowy 2.0 Feasibility Study (2017) (Chapter 17)

Outcomes

The outcome of this project is to understand how best to develop controls that will better manage the impacts of the Snowy 2.0 project.

Contact:

Dr Lee Baumgartner  email

CSU Albury-Wodonga

February 2018