Australian company EarthTEC supplied and installed the Tuffboom following the award of a contract by the State Water Corporation of NSW. The barriers will protect the public during water releases from the dam and prevent access to the spillway during a $116.4M upgrade to bring the dam up to contemporary safety standards for extreme floods and earthquakes.
The Tuffbooms separate the dam wall from a nearby boating ramp and are connected by concrete anchorages on the shoreline and the dam floor. One of the booms has a mechanical gate to allow construction craft access to the water side of the dam wall.
The Tuffbooms are also equipped with solar-powered lights, installed at 20m intervals, to ensure recreational craft can identify the water barriers at night. As a further safety measure, warning signs are moulded into, rather than painted on, the surface of the Tuffbooms.
The 55m high Keepit Dam is a rock-fill gravity structure located on the Namoi River, between Gunnedah and Tamworth. The dam was completed in 1960 and has since become a popular fishing area, stocked with large numbers of Murray Cod as well as gold and silver perch.
It is used primarily for irrigation of the Namoi Valley, and since it was built, a large cotton-growing industry has been established in the area.
