{"help": "https://data.nsw.gov.au/data/api/3/action/help_show?name=package_show", "success": true, "result": {"author": "Cessnock City Council", "author_email": null, "contact_info": "False", "contact_point": "council@cessnock.nsw.gov.au", "creator_user_id": "8d2ac61a-d63a-4456-a00d-b35fee4c4025", "data_state": "inactive", "id": "d8a729ee-4aa3-47f5-b844-0a350ca1966f", "isopen": true, "jurisdiction": "New South Wales Government", "license_id": "cc-by", "license_title": "Creative Commons Attribution", "license_url": "http://www.opendefinition.org/licenses/cc-by", "maintainer": null, "maintainer_email": null, "metadata_created": "2025-12-17T02:11:20.850940", "metadata_modified": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.291761", "name": "fdp-wallis-and-swamp-fishery-creeks-flood-study-main-report", "notes": "STUDY FINDINGS\r\n- Swamp/Fishery Creeks System\r\nThe most significant flooding of the Swamp/Fishery Creeks system over the last 50 years\r\noccurred in February 1990 and June 2007. Detailed investigations and modelling\r\nundertaken for this study has shown that the June 2007 flood was larger or rarer than the\r\ndesign 100 year ARI event, and that it was substantially rarer in the vicinity of Abermain.\r\nThe analysis shows that the June 2007 event was in the order of a 200 year ARI flood at\r\nAbermain and slightly rarer (i.e., or larger) than a 100 year ARI event at Weston. This\r\nevent led to inundation of large areas of the adjoining floodplain of Swamp Creek and\r\nsignificant property damage at Abermain and Weston, and in between.\r\nThe modelling of design events up to the 100 year ARI flood shows that flooding of\r\nSwamp Creek is most severe between the Kline Street Bridge and the Government Road\r\nBridge crossings, with significant overbank inundation occurring during floods of the\r\nmagnitude of the 20 year ARI event. A number of properties are flooded in this area in\r\nevents of this severity, particularly in the vicinity of the Fourth Street Bridge crossing\r\n(refer to Figure 18). Water depths in the vicinity of the houses along the right bank of the\r\nFourth Street Bridge crossing are estimated to be up to 0.8 metres in the 100 year ARI\r\nflood and mean velocities are in the order of 0.5 m/s.\r\nFlooding at Abermain can also be severe, as evidenced by the June 2007 event.\r\nFloodwaters from the upper catchment are concentrated in the main channel of Swamp\r\nCreek which is flanked by residential development that extends along both banks the\r\nWilliam Street and the Cessnock Road bridges. The flood modelling results show that this\r\nreach of Swamp Creek experiences steeper flood surface gradients than further\r\ndownstream. As a result, there is greater potential for flood damage and risk to life due to\r\nthe high energy flow regime that can occur during major flooding.\r\nDownstream of Loxford, Wentworth Swamps provide a massive flood storage area which\r\nhas the capacity to hold a volume of nearly 11 million cubic metres in a design 100 year\r\nARI event. This storage serves to provide significant attenuation of flows carried by\r\nSwamp Creek and reduces the impact of these flows before they discharge into Wallis\r\nCreek. Therefore, it is important that the Wentworth Swamps storage be retained so that\r\nflooding downstream in the Louth Park and South Maitland area is not exacerbated.\r\n- Wallis Creek\r\nFlooding due to catchment runoff (with no fresh in the Hunter) is generally retained within\r\nthe defined floodplain downstream to Buttai Lagoon. Further downstream, in the Louth\r\nPark area, floodwaters are controlled by local levees and spillways. These spillways are\r\novertopped in the 1% AEP local catchment runoff event.\r\nHowever, flooding of the lower Wallis Creek Valley can be influenced by backwater\r\nflooding from the Hunter River. That is, the worst flooding conditions downstream from\r\nJohn Renshaw Drive typically occur when flooding of Wallis Creek occurs concurrently\r\nwith flooding of the Hunter River. Modelling has shown that when a flood of 20 year\r\nrecurrence or rarer occurs in the Hunter River, levees around Maitland within the Lower\r\nHunter Flood Mitigation System, will overtop and begin to fill backwater storages. As\r\nthese backwater storages fill, floodwaters back-up in a southerly direction along Wallis\r\nCreek, generating higher flood levels than would occur in local catchment events.\r\nHistorical flood records indicate that a peak flood level of 10.3 mAHD was recorded\r\nduring the 1955 flood at Victoria Bridge, which is near the current site of the Wallis Creek\r\nflood gates. A peak level of 6.2 mAHD was recorded at the Trappaud Road Bridge\r\ncrossing of Wallis Creek in 1977.\r\nAs a result, peak 100 year recurrence flood levels along Wallis Creek are generated by the\r\noccurrence of coincident Hunter River flooding. As shown in Figures 22 to 30, these\r\nbackwater effects extend almost upstream to John Renshaw Drive.\r\n- RECOMMENDATIONS\r\n- Swamp/Fishery Creeks System\r\n\uf0a7 Undertake a floodplain management study for Abermain and Weston aimed at\r\ninvestigating planning and structural options that could be implemented to reduce flood\r\ndamages incurred by property owners adjacent to the creek.\r\nPotential structural flood damage reduction options (in order of provisional priority)\r\ninclude:\r\n(i) creek improvements such as vegetation clearing, channel de-silting and channel\r\nrealignment;\r\n(ii) construction of on-line flood control dams or retarding basins in the upper catchment\r\nof Swamp Creek;\r\n(iii) modification to existing off-line storages such as Hebburn Reservoir so as to increase\r\ntheir flood storage capacity;\r\n(iv) upgrading of bridge waterway areas for bridge crossings; and,\r\n(v) installation of levees along the creek banks.\r\nIt should be noted that a preliminary assessment of potential structural flood\r\nmanagement options is being undertaken concurrently with the finalisation of this\r\nreport.\r\nThis assessment includes the consideration of the flood mitigation benefits that would\r\nbe afforded by channel vegetation clearing, channel lowering (dredging) and increased\r\noff-line flood storage (Hebburn Reservoir). The findings from this preliminary option\r\nassessment are to be documented in a separate report which will inform any future\r\nFloodplain Risk Management Plan that is developed for the villages of Abermain and\r\nWeston.\r\nPotential non-structural measures that could be implemented to minimise flood damage (in\r\norder of provisional priority) include:\r\n(i) House raising.\r\n(ii) Property buy back scheme.\r\n(iii) Flood proofing of flood affected buildings\r\n(iv) Planning controls that:\r\n\uf02b Set minimum habitable floor levels based on the flood hazard\r\n\uf02b Modify land-use zonings upstream of the perceived flood problem to ensure that\r\nfuture development is not incompatible with flooding and that future development\r\ndoes not worsen flooding in downstream areas\r\n(v) Provide flood evacuation routes.\r\n(vi) Undertake flood awareness campaigns and develop a suitable flood warning system.\r\n\uf0a7 Re-commission the water level gauge recorder (Station No 210053) located at Horton\r\nRoad, Kurri Kurri, so that a continuous record of the water levels of future floods can be\r\nrecorded and used to generate a discharge hydrograph for Swamp Creek, which in turn\r\ncan be used to calibrate further hydrodynamic modelling, as required.\r\n- Wallis Creek System\r\n\uf0a7 Undertake a floodplain management study for the Buchanan Area aimed at determining\r\nplanning controls that could be implemented to manage potential future development\r\nthat may be promoted on or adjacent to the floodplain as a consequence of the F3\r\nExtension to Branxton.\r\n\uf0a7 Installation of a pluviograph within the Wallis Creek catchment to provide a continuous\r\nrecord of rainfall for use in assessing the severity of future floods and the significance\r\nof rainfall distributions to flood behaviour. It is suggested that the pluviograph be\r\nlocated around Mulbring to provide a realistic measure of average rainfall patterns.\r\n\uf0a7 Re-commission the water level gauge recorder located along Wallis Creek at Richmond\r\nVale, so that a continuous record of the water levels of future floods can be recorded\r\nand used to generate a discharge hydrograph for Wallis Creek, which in turn can be\r\nused to calibrate further hydrodynamic modelling, as required.", "num_resources": 4, "num_tags": 7, "organization": {"id": "3c3b0d49-4b41-4d30-9efd-755af8f394c3", "name": "cessnock-city-council", "title": "Cessnock City Council", "type": "organization", "description": "Cessnock City Council provides a diverse range of services and facilities for the residents of the LGA as well as visitors to the area. Councils across Australia are now responsible for much more than just the three 'R's' - rates, roads and rubbish.\r\nLocal government has been in operation in the Cessnock area since 1906 when the Shire of Cessnock held its first meeting. Cessnock was declared a City in 1958; this was following several amalgamations and splits as new Shires were formed and reshaped.", "image_url": "2021-03-22-030926.143182Cessnock.jpg", "created": "2021-03-11T10:22:18.890751", "is_organization": true, "approval_status": "approved", "state": "active"}, "owner_org": "3c3b0d49-4b41-4d30-9efd-755af8f394c3", "private": false, "spatial": "{\r\n \"type\": \"Polygon\",\r\n \"coordinates\": [\r\n  [\r\n   [\r\n    151.45378405228257,\r\n    -32.938547595866204\r\n   ],\r\n   [\r\n    151.45378405228257,\r\n    -32.69934986781941\r\n   ],\r\n   [\r\n    151.6335753723979,\r\n    -32.69934986781941\r\n   ],\r\n   [\r\n    151.6335753723979,\r\n    -32.938547595866204\r\n   ],\r\n   [\r\n    151.45378405228257,\r\n    -32.938547595866204\r\n   ]\r\n  ]\r\n ]\r\n}", "spatial_coverage": "New South Wales (NSW81093)", "state": "active", "temporal_coverage_to": "2011-04-01", "title": "Wallis and Swamp Fishery Creeks Flood Study - main report", "type": "dataset", "unpublished": "false", "update_freq": "as_required", "url": null, "version": null, "extras": [{"key": "fdp_type", "value": "related-dataset"}, {"key": "harvest_portal", "value": "Flood Data Portal"}, {"key": "harvest_url", "value": "https://flooddata.ses.nsw.gov.au/related-dataset/wallis-and-swamp-fishery-creeks-flood-study-main-report"}], "groups": [{"description": "The function of [land and resource management](http://search.records.nsw.gov.au/functions/10) includes the administration of crown land and the process of alienation, including surveying, mapping, and the preparation of leases and titles. The function also includes the zoning of land for a variety of purposes (residential, commercial, agricultural, mining, native title, parks and gardens, etc.) and the siting of major projects such as the Darling Harbour Authority. \r\n\r\nThe term also covers the management of resources such as water, soil and forests with the aim of ensuring that exploitation and use are balanced by policies and practices aimed at sustaining and preserving the resource for future generations.", "display_name": "Land and Resource Management", "id": "a160173c-b6d2-4696-9da9-3d3f71242672", "image_display_url": "", "name": "land-and-resource-management", "title": "Land and Resource Management"}], "resources": [{"cache_last_updated": null, "cache_url": null, "created": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.367769", "datastore_active": false, "datastore_contains_all_records_of_source_file": false, "format": "", "hash": "", "id": "870e77d6-3047-4c63-88a2-a5df5be334c1", "last_modified": null, "metadata_modified": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.305095", "mimetype": null, "mimetype_inner": null, "name": "Wallis and Swamp Fishery Creeks Flood Study - Final Report - Figures Part 1", "package_id": "d8a729ee-4aa3-47f5-b844-0a350ca1966f", "position": 0, "resource_type": null, "size": null, "state": "active", "tracking_summary": {"total": 0, "recent": 0}, "url": "https://flooddata.ses.nsw.gov.au/dataset/ebd5ebdc-d136-41cf-8b37-7ffd9fdbaf36/resource/2cb23e2e-94b4-4908-adc1-c206106b2547", "url_type": null}, {"cache_last_updated": null, "cache_url": null, "created": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.367774", "datastore_active": false, "datastore_contains_all_records_of_source_file": false, "format": "", "hash": "", "id": "2be3b5f6-f7a0-4123-86d4-2a83323dd518", "last_modified": null, "metadata_modified": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.305400", "mimetype": null, "mimetype_inner": null, "name": "Wallis and Swamp Fishery Creeks Flood Study - Final Report - Figures Part 2", "package_id": "d8a729ee-4aa3-47f5-b844-0a350ca1966f", "position": 1, "resource_type": null, "size": null, "state": "active", "tracking_summary": {"total": 0, "recent": 0}, "url": "https://flooddata.ses.nsw.gov.au/dataset/ebd5ebdc-d136-41cf-8b37-7ffd9fdbaf36/resource/6f110037-f2c0-4138-b3cc-27c5885e7346", "url_type": null}, {"cache_last_updated": null, "cache_url": null, "created": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.367776", "datastore_active": false, "datastore_contains_all_records_of_source_file": false, "format": "", "hash": "", "id": "3a1dcb6c-5078-49bb-87da-2126a66df880", "last_modified": null, "metadata_modified": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.305665", "mimetype": null, "mimetype_inner": null, "name": "Wallis and Swamp Fishery Creeks Flood Study - Final Report - Appendices", "package_id": "d8a729ee-4aa3-47f5-b844-0a350ca1966f", "position": 2, "resource_type": null, "size": null, "state": "active", "tracking_summary": {"total": 0, "recent": 0}, "url": "https://flooddata.ses.nsw.gov.au/dataset/ebd5ebdc-d136-41cf-8b37-7ffd9fdbaf36/resource/2e757ba6-96c6-480b-b600-37ec8348f2c0", "url_type": null}, {"cache_last_updated": null, "cache_url": null, "created": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.367778", "datastore_active": false, "datastore_contains_all_records_of_source_file": false, "format": "", "hash": "", "id": "3ead49c9-b5df-41e4-ae85-4d45cb4e10bd", "last_modified": null, "metadata_modified": "2026-02-12T22:56:04.305903", "mimetype": null, "mimetype_inner": null, "name": "Wallis and Swamp Fishery Creek Flood Study 2011", "package_id": "d8a729ee-4aa3-47f5-b844-0a350ca1966f", "position": 3, "resource_type": null, "size": null, "state": "active", "tracking_summary": {"total": 0, "recent": 0}, "url": "https://flooddata.ses.nsw.gov.au/dataset/ebd5ebdc-d136-41cf-8b37-7ffd9fdbaf36/resource/9902715c-981e-4dff-a547-6a0a5b70e4c4", "url_type": null}], "tags": [{"display_name": "Fishery Creek", "id": "8260ece6-5b3b-4c9d-bdad-7eaca6694476", "name": "Fishery Creek", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}, {"display_name": "Kurri Kurri", "id": "179366d0-13c7-4ac9-9784-e8f18d012ee0", "name": "Kurri Kurri", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}, {"display_name": "Swamp Creek", "id": "77791722-0761-4db3-8fd0-fd51d12bb7ac", "name": "Swamp Creek", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}, {"display_name": "Wallis Creek", "id": "112934cd-0f83-4b85-86a1-19ed76b9a0f2", "name": "Wallis Creek", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}, {"display_name": "Wentworth Swamp", "id": "bad58da1-e76f-4119-b157-19f6a603ee3d", "name": "Wentworth Swamp", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}, {"display_name": "hydraulic model", "id": "677b7fb9-3abd-4741-8855-7a364a72eac6", "name": "hydraulic model", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}, {"display_name": "hydrologic model", "id": "50c66e01-a7ce-4b31-9055-0e5dbccddf1e", "name": "hydrologic model", "state": "active", "vocabulary_id": null}], "relationships_as_subject": [], "relationships_as_object": [], "likes": 0, "tracking_summary": {"total": 0, "recent": 0}}}