To whom it may concern,
We came to the Blue Mtns in 1990 to enjoy the lifestyle afforded by the local environment and its flora and fauna (via bushwalking and living in proximity to the Blue Mountains National Park).

When the World Heritage GBMA (Greater Blue Mountains Area) was announced in 2000 this action was clearly an indication that the original UNESCO nomination by the Australian Federal & NSW State Governments also recognised the need to protect this area of outstanding universal value (refer https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/917/).

That was a time to celebrate their joint decision.

The NSW Government now (2016) deem that raising the Warragamba Dam by 17m, thereby flooding up to 6,000ha of that GBMA on the scantily modelled pretext that this action may "possibly" ameliorate flooding in the Hawkesbury-Nepean floodplain (H-N floodplain).
This NSW Government project does not appear to have been adequately assessed (presumably with assistance from SMEC Engineering) whose environmental and cultural credentials on other similar projects in the world seem to have been less than acceptable to bodies such as the World Bank (https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-29/smec-hit-by-world-bank-ban-over-bribery-allegations/9001772).


This is a time to condemn a poorly formulated solution to flood plain management.

Hence we strongly oppose raising the dam wall which will cause untold damage to the World Heritage GBMA.

Other options need to be investigated by the NSW government in regard to flooding in the H-N floodplain, and local authorities should not be encouraged to allow excessive further density of population to occur within this already overburdened residential zone.

Other points of concern:
* 65Kms of wilderness rivers (eg Kowmung) would be inundated
* 1,500 indigeous sites estimated to be inundated
* Habitat of endangered Koala & Honeyeater colonies to be drowned
* Only 7.5m of the 17m dam wall increase has apparently been considered in the environmental assessment , this seems absurd...
* Approval of this project will set a dangerous precedent for Australia's World Heritage and National Park protections
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To whom it may concern,
I wish to voice my opposition to the NSW Government's raising the wall of the Warragamba dam.
Outside of travel restrictions, I regularly take trips to the Blue Mountains with my husband and daughter to go bushwalking so that we can escape the suburbs and enjoy the fresh air, nature and its' beautiful surrounds whilst exercising. We also never tire of discovering the indigenous history of the region where there are over 1,541 identified cultural heritage sites that would be inundated by the dam and of which have not been appropriately assessed in consultation with the Gundungurra Community. Australia has a long way to go in recognising its' indigenous history and people, and the painfully slow, small but hopeful steps that have been taken over time will feel like they have been done in vain if this goes ahead and will only cause more division.
The flora and fauna that will be wiped away is heartbreakingly unnecessary and borders on criminal when we are approaching devastating climate change with so many plants and animals struggling to adapt and the threat of becoming extinct. There are already a number of threatened ecological communities in the area including habitat for critically endangered species like the Regent Honeyeaters and Sydney's last Emu population and World Heritage sites will be under attack.
The engineering firm SMEC that did the environmental and cultural study have a history of abusing Indigenous rights and have recently been barred from the World Bank and have not adequately assessed the impacts of recent bushfires to the area, have only assessed 27% of the impacted area for Aboriginal Cultural Heritage, have not obtained expert reports on threatened species, have not done any modelling of the the flood and economic benefits that have been stated in their report and therefore should not be used by the Minister for Planning to make further decisions as it lacks integrity and is fundamentally flawed.
The alternative options to raising the Warragamba dam wall have not been assessed appropriately by the EIS. No matter how high the wall is built, flooding can never be prevented in the Hawkesbury-Nepean Vally downstream as 45% of floodwaters are derived from areas outside of the catchment upstream of Warragamba dam.
Thank you for taking the time to consider my submission and I look forward to the right decision being made NOT to raise the Warragamba dam wall.

To whom it may concern,
This must not happen. We must conserve all our remaining wilderness at all costs .
Thos plan is flawed and not a solution.
I object.

To whom it may concern,
My partner has family living in SW Sydney and when we visit we enjoy walking and canyoning in the blue moutains area the I am deeply concerned that the project of raising the Warragamba dam wall will result in damage to natural and cultural values.
I oppose the dam raising.

To whom it may concern,
I oppose raising the dam. It's an unnecessary reaction to a risk that does not warrant it. The damage to the environment will be horrendous. Please stop this proposal.

To whom it may concern,
I oppose this dam wall raising. I would like to see more research conducted before the dam wall is increased. It concerns me that the advice of relevant government departments has not been heeded.

To whom it may concern,
I am a long time resident of the Blue Mountains. I moved here over 50 years ago and feel strongly against the proposal to raise the Warragamba Dam wall.
It terrifies me to think that the Warragamba Dam wall can be raised higher than present day. Not only will it flood further into the Burragorang Valley, but it will allow for more water to be stored in Warragamba Dam and then when it overflows (and it would) those on the flood plains will be devastated more than ever. Putting more housing on the flood plains should be totally out of the question. It would put more lives and livlihoods at risk.
Raising the Warragamba Dam wall will affect:
• Identified Aboriginal Cultural Heritage in the Burragorang Valley and beyond
• Identified threatened species of the area
• Identified Wild Rivers of the area
• The UNESCO World Heritage listing of the Blue Mountains
Please consider alternatives to raising the Warragamba Dam wall for the future generations.

To whom it may concern, The world-heritage-listed Blue Mountains are precious for many reasons - threatened plant and animal species, indigenous cultural sites, one of the last wild rivers, the Kowmung, near Sydney - and should not be flooded as per this proposal - an area which Australia promised the rest of the world to protect. Why has Matt Kean omitted to add this site to his list of "Assets of Intergenerational Significance"? There are also other ways of mitigating flood events that will not harm the environment.

To whom it may concern,
Having lived in the Blue Mountains for my entire life, any projects that would have a significant ecological impact concern me greatly. Working in hospitality in Katoomba, I know that a large majority of the businesses in the Blue Mountains are reliant on tourism, and as the effects of this project will be visible from Echo Point (one of the largest tourist attractions in the Blue Mountains) I am concerned about the finical impact of this project on our tourism industry.
This project will inundate 5,700 hectares of National Parks and 1,300 hectares of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, causing significant environmental damage. Additionally, it has been estimated that the project would flood 1,500 indigenous cultural heritage sites. Such damage to the natural and cultural aspects of the Blue Mountains is in breach of Australia’s obligations under the World Heritage Convention and could impact the World Heritage status of the Blue Mountains, consequently impacting the tourism industry of the Blue Mountains. According to Destination NSW's report Economic Contribution of Tourism to NSW, 2016-2017, the tourism industry of the Blue Mountains contributed $34.2 billion to the NSW economy (6% of the state's GSP) and employed approximately 171,000 people. Considering this, I believe that this project poses too great a risk to both the environmental and cultural integrity of the Blue Mountains as well having the potential to endanger citizens jobs and a significant percentage of the states GSP.
Along with these considerations, it is my belief that we as a people have a moral obligation to protect the land that we live on, the species that live on this land, especially endangered species such as the emu, koala, and regent honeyeater (all whose habitats will be flooded by this project) and indigenous cultural heritage sites.
Due to the factors mentioned in this letter, I strongly oppose the raising of the Warragamba Dam wall.

To whom it may concern,
After visiting the Blue Mountains over a period of 35 years, my personal connection with the landscape, flora and fauna is integral to my own mental health, physical health and that of my families.
If someone can be so affected by the Blue Mountains over 35 years, then it's beyond comprehension how important that same landscape is to an ancient culture that dates back well over seven thousand years.
Over ONE THOUSAND sites have been identified as cultural heritage sites and they would all be directly effected by damming the Warragamba to the proposed new level. This fact is alone is a shocking disregard and offence to one of the oldest cultures on earth!
I am completely opposed to any further damming of the Warragamba Dam which would destroy ancient and culturally sensitive sites. The loss of unique eucalyptus species is also unacceptable.
The fact that the proposal disregards the value a World Heritage Area denotes and underlines, is a complete disregard for what is integral to the health of our own species!