Executive Summary

Cardno were commissioned by Shellharbour City Council to undertake the Floodplain Risk Management Study and Plan for the Elliot Lake – Little Lake catchment area. The Elliot Lake – Little Lake catchment lies south of Lake Illawarra in the Shellharbour LGA and drains to the Tasman Sea via Elliot Lake – Little Lake. The catchment covers approximately 12.4 km2 and includes the suburbs of Barrack Heights, Shellharbour, Flinders, Blackbutt and large parts of Mt Warrigal and Warilla. The majority of the catchment is urbanised with predominantly residential development and some business and light industry. Blackbutt Forest Reserve and the area upstream of the Princes Highway in the southern part of the catchment form the two main undeveloped areas. The main waterways of the catchment are Bensons Creek, Bensons Tributary and Tongarra Creek. Bensons Creek and Bensons Tributary drain the northern part of the study area, whilst Tongarra Creek drains the southern part. Both creeks drain into Elliot Lake – Little Lake which discharges to the Tasman Sea at Barrack Point. Most of these waterways are natural channels, except for:

• A piped section running from Andrew Park to Shellharbour War Memorial Park;

• A short concrete lined section in Bensons Creek adjacent to Shellharbour War Memorial Park; and

• A short concrete lined section in Bensons Tributary downstream of JN King Memorial Park.