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Lake Burley Griffin

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Oceania
(Australasia)


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   The Central Basin and Captain Cook water jet looking towards the
   National Library and Parliament House
   Enlarge
   The Central Basin and Captain Cook water jet looking towards the
   National Library and Parliament House

   Lake Burley Griffin is a lake in the centre of Canberra, Australia's
   federal capital city. It was created in 1963 after the Molonglo River,
   which runs through the city centre, was dammed. It is named after
   Walter Burley Griffin, the architect who won the design competition for
   the city of Canberra.

   The lake is located in the approximate geographic centre of the city,
   according to Griffin's original designs. Numerous important
   institutions, such as the National Gallery of Australia, National
   Museum of Australia, National Library of Australia and the High Court
   of Australia lie on its shores, and Parliament House is a short
   distance away. Its surrounds are also quite popular with recreational
   users, particularly in the warmer months. Though swimming in the lake
   is uncommon, it is used for a wide variety of other activities, such as
   rowing, fishing, and sailing.

   The lake's flow is regulated by the 33 metre tall Scrivener Dam, which
   is designed to handle a once in 5000 year flood event. If required in
   times of drought, water levels can be maintained through the release of
   water from Googong Dam, located on an upstream tributary of the
   Molonglo River.

Design

   Map of Lake Burley Griffin
   Enlarge
   Map of Lake Burley Griffin

   Charles Robert Scrivener (1855-1923) recommended the site for Canberra
   in 1909, and his detailed survey plans of the area were supplied to the
   architects who entered the Canberra design competition. Later,
   Scrivener, as part of a design committee, was responsible for modifying
   Griffin's winning design. He recommended changing the shape of the lake
   from Griffin's very geometric shapes to a much more organic one using a
   single dam, unlike Griffin's series of weirs. The new design included
   elements from several of the best design submissions and was widely
   criticised as being ugly. The new plan for the lake retained Griffin's
   three formal basins: east, central, and west, though in a more relaxed
   form. The plans were varied again in the following years with the
   return of Griffin, but the design of Lake Burley Griffin remains based
   largely on the original committee's plan.

   The lake contains 33 million m^3 of water with a surface area of 6.64
   km^2 (2.56 sq mi). It is 11 kilometres (7 mi) long, 1.2 kilometres
   (0.75 mi) wide at its widest point, has a shoreline of 40.5 kilometres
   (25.2 mi) and a water level of 556 metres (1824 feet) above sea level.
   Lake Burley Griffin contains six islands, three unnamed small islands
   and three larger named islands. Of the larger islands, Aspen Island is
   located in Central Basin while Springbank and Spinnaker Island are
   located in the West Basin. Aspen Island is connected to dry land by a
   footbridge and is the site of the Australian National Carillon.

Construction

Excavation

   Construction of Lake Burley Griffin was begun in 1960 and progressed
   well due to drought having greatly reduced the water flow of the
   Molonglo River. Critics believed that the lake would act as a breeding
   ground for mosquitoes. Care was taken to excavate the lake to a depth
   of over two metres both to prevent mosquitoes from breeding and to
   allow clearance for boat keels. The lake varies in depth from around 2
   metres at the eastern end, to 18 metres at the dam wall. The mean depth
   is 4 metres.

Dam

   Scrivener Dam
   Enlarge
   Scrivener Dam

   The dam used to create Lake Burley Griffin was named Scrivener Dam
   after Charles Robert Scrivener. The dam is 33 metres high and 319
   metres long with a five bay spillway controlled by 30.5 metre wide,
   hydraulically operated fish-belly flap gates. The fish-belly gates
   allow for a precise control of water level, reducing the dead area on
   the banks between high and low water levels. The five gates have only
   been opened simultaneously once in the dam's history, during flooding
   in 1976. The dam is designed to handle a once in 5000 year flood event.
   The dam contains 55,000 cubic metres of concrete with a maximum wall
   thickness of 19.7 metres. A roadway atop the dam wall provides a third
   road crossing for the lake.

Filling

   The drought that had made construction easy meant that when the valves
   were closed on 20 September 1963 the lake was very slow to fill. After
   seven months there was still only a trickle of water and some
   mosquito-infested pools. Luckily the drought broke and the lake was
   filled after only several days of heavy rain.

   On October 17, 1964 Robert Menzies commemorated the filling of the lake
   and the completion of stage one with an opening ceremony. The minister
   for the Interior, Gordon Freeth suggested that Menzies had "been in a
   material sense the father of the lake" and that the lake should be
   named Lake Menzies. Menzies insisted that the lake should be named
   after Walter Burley Griffin—Canberra's designer responsible for the
   concept of the lake—who had no existing monument in Canberra. (Griffin
   usually referred to himself as Walter Griffin, but the form "Walter
   Burley Griffin" has become established in Australia.)

   Lake levels in times of severe drought can sometimes fall below the
   desired level. This can be compensated for by the release of water from
   Googong Dam on the Queanbeyan River, a tributary of the Molonglo.
   Googong Dam was built in 1979 to cope with Canberra and Queanbeyan's
   growing water supply needs, and can contain up to 124,500 million
   litres of water.

Bridges

   Commonwealth Avenue Bridge
   Enlarge
   Commonwealth Avenue Bridge

   Lake Burley Griffin is crossed by Commonwealth Avenue Bridge (310
   metres), Kings Avenue Bridge (270 metres) and a roadway over Scrivener
   Dam. The two bridges were constructed before the lake was filled and
   are designed to allow the passage of recreational sailing boats with
   tall masts. Both bridges are dual-carriageway, Commonwealth Avenue has
   three lanes in each direction while Kings Avenue has two.

   Site testing for both the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge and the Kings
   Avenue Bridge took place during late 1959 to early 1960.

   Scrivener Dam is crossed by Lady Denman Drive which has a narrow two
   lane roadway.

Captain Cook Memorial

   Captain Cook Fountain on Lake Burley Griffin
   Enlarge
   Captain Cook Fountain on Lake Burley Griffin

   The Captain James Cook Memorial was built by the Commonwealth
   Government to commemorate the Bicentenary of Captain James Cook's first
   sighting of the east coast of Australia. The memorial includes a water
   jet located in the central basin and a skeleton globe sculpture at
   Regatta Point showing the paths of Cook's expeditions. On 25 April
   1970, Queen Elizabeth II officially inaugurated the memorial.

   The water jet is powered by two 560 kilowatt electric motors driving
   four stage centrifugal pumps capable of pumping up to 250 litres per
   second against a head of 183 meters. The water velocity at the water
   nozzle is 260 km/h. While running both pumps simultaneously the main
   jet throws approximately six tons of water into the air at any instant,
   reaching a maximum height of 147 metres. Alternatively the jet can be
   run on a single pump reaching a lower height of 110 metres. During
   special occasions it can be illuminated, often with coloured lights.

   The water jet operates from 10-11.45 a.m. in the morning and 2-3.45
   p.m. in the afternoon. During summer it also operates for an extra
   period from 7-9 p.m.. In periods of high wind the jet is automatically
   disabled as water landing on the nearby Commonwealth Avenue Bridge can
   be a hazard to traffic. The water jet must also be occasionally shut
   down when drought lowers the water level of the lake.

Water quality

   Toxic blue-green algae blooms are unfortunately a reasonably common
   occurrence in the lake. Warnings about coming into contact with the
   water are released when an algal bloom is detected. Attempts are being
   made to limit the amount of phosphates entering the lake in the hope of
   improving its water quality. Blue-green algae (more correctly
   cyanobacteria) produce toxins, which can be harmful for humans and any
   other animals that come in contact with the contaminated water. There
   have been several cases of dogs being affected after playing in and
   drinking the lake water.

   The water also appears murky due to a high level of turbidity, possibly
   a result of the bottom feeding of large numbers of introduced carp in
   the lake.

Lakeside recreation

   View across west basin from Acton Peninsula
   Enlarge
   View across west basin from Acton Peninsula

   The surrounds of Lake Burley Griffin are very popular recreational
   areas, especially in the warmer months. Public parks exist for most of
   the shore line with free electric barbecue facilities, fenced-in
   swimming areas, picnic tables and toilet facilities. Some of the parks
   reserved for public recreation include Commonwealth, Weston, Kings and
   Grevillea Parks, Lennox Gardens and Commonwealth Place. A bike path
   also surrounds the lake with riding, walking or jogging around the lake
   being a popular activity on the weekends. Fireworks are often held over
   the lake on New Years Eve, and there has been an annual large fireworks
   show called Skyfire run at the lake since 1988.

Water sports

   Maricat on West Basin, Lake Burley Griffin with Black Mountain Tower in
   the background.
   Enlarge
   Maricat on West Basin, Lake Burley Griffin with Black Mountain Tower in
   the background.

   Lake Burley Griffin, apart from being ornamental, is used for many
   recreational activities. Sailing and windsurfing are popular all year
   round. A rowing course is set up at the western end of the lake.
   Swimming is becoming less common due partly to concerns about water
   quality and generally cold water temperature. During summer, the lake
   is used for the swim leg of numerous triathlon and aquathlon events
   including the Sri Chinmoy Triathlon Festival.

   Generally powerboat use on the lake is not permitted. Permits are
   available for the use of powered boats on the lake for use in rescue,
   training, commercial purposes or special interest (historic steam
   powered boats, etc). Molonglo Reach, an area of the Molonglo River just
   before it enters the east basin is set aside for water skiing.
   Powerboats may be used in this limited area.

Fishing

   The view along Central Basin towards the Carillion and Defence
   Headqaurters
   Enlarge
   The view along Central Basin towards the Carillion and Defence
   Headqaurters

   Fishing is quite popular in the lake with the most common species being
   the illegally introduced Carp. The lake has been stocked annually with
   a variety of introduced and native species and over 1.26 million fish
   have been released since 1964. Annual monitoring is carried out to
   determine fish populations. The 2001 survey only returned Carp and
   Redfin perch, both introduced species, and native Golden Perch. However
   a number of less common species also inhabit the lake, including native
   Murray Cod, Western Carp Gudgeon and Silver Perch, as well as
   introduced Goldfish, Gambusia, Rainbow trout and Brown trout.

   There have been many changes to the fish populations in the lake as
   well as stocking practices since it was first filled. Stockings of
   introduced Trout have been abandoned as the lake has proved to be a
   warm, eutrophic habitat that is not suited to the survival of
   introduced Trout species.

   Regular stocking since the start of the 1980s have re-established
   reasonable populations of Golden Perch and highly elusive Murray Cod;
   native fish that were indigenous to the Molonglo River before the lake
   was built, but had been lost to mining pollution of the Molonglo River
   in the 1930s and 1940s. Today Golden Perch and Murray Cod are the only
   fish stocked in the lake. Murray Cod are remarkable as freshwater fish
   for the extreme sizes they achieve and this is particularly the case
   for Lake Burley-Griffin; specimens to approximately 38 kg have been
   recorded and there is no doubt there are a few even larger Murray cod
   in the lake.

Safety

   The National Carillon on Aspen Island
   Enlarge
   The National Carillon on Aspen Island

   The lake is patrolled by the Australian Federal Police water police.
   The water police give assistance to lake users, helping to right boats
   and towing crippled craft to shore.

   At most swimming locations around Lake Burley Griffin there are
   fenced-in swimming areas for safety. In the more popular areas, there
   are also safety lockers with life belts and emergency phones for
   requesting help. Between 1962 and 1991 seven people died from drowning
   in Lake Burley Griffin.

   For reasons of safety and water quality the lake is zoned for different
   activities in separate sections. The zoning for each section is as
   follows:
     * Molonglo Reach, the Molonglo River from Dairy Road to East Basin
       Pavilion is zoned for primary contact water activities such as
       swimming and water skiing.
     * East Basin, from Molonglo Reach to Kings Avenue Bridge is zoned for
       Secondary contact water sports only (sailing or rowing). This part
       of the lake is shallow and tends to have higher turbidity picked up
       from the lake bottom in windy conditions. The shore of the lake in
       this area is walled to discourage swimming.
     * Central Basin between Kings Avenue and Commonwealth Avenue is also
       zoned a secondary contact area and is edged with walls.
     * West Lake and Tarcoola Reach, the area of the lake from
       Commonwealth Avenue to Kurrajong Point is the primary recreational
       area of the lake. Primary as well as secondary contact water sports
       are allowed. Beaches, boat ramps and jetties encourage lake use in
       this area.
     * Yarramundi Reach, situated just before Scrivener Dam has a marked
       rowing course. It is zoned for secondary contact but primary
       contact activities are also allowed.

Panoramic images

   Lake Burley Griffin seen from Telstra Tower
   Enlarge
   Lake Burley Griffin seen from Telstra Tower
   Lake Burley Griffin (west basin), with Black Mountain and Telstra Tower
   to the right
   Enlarge
   Lake Burley Griffin (west basin), with Black Mountain and Telstra Tower
   to the right

Notable lakeside places

East Basin

     * Kingston Foreshores Development
     * Kingston Powerhouse

Central Basin

     * Commonwealth Park
     * Commonwealth Place
     * High Court of Australia
     * National Carillon
     * National Gallery of Australia
     * National Library of Australia
     * National Science and Technology Centre
     * Regatta Point

West Basin

     * Albert Hall
     * Hotel Canberra
     * Lennox Gardens
     * National Museum of Australia

West Lake

     * Black Mountain Peninsula
     * Government House
     * Weston Park
     * Yarralumla Yacht Club

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Burley_Griffin"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
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