Canning Contour Channel
Encyclopedia
The Canning Contour Channel is a 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) series of made-made concrete
channels and steel and cast iron pipelines in the Darling Scarp
in Western Australia
constructed between July 1935 and December 1936. The project was a Depression
era public works scheme to carry potable water from just below Canning Dam
through the hills around and above Roleystone
and Kelmscott
to a screening, flouridation and pumping station near Gosnells
by following the natural contours of the Canning Valley—hence it was entirely gravity fed. Where a tributary valley needed to be crossed, suspended or siphoning pipelines were used. From Gosnells the water entered the city's pipeline distribution system.
The channel supplied drinking water to the metropolitan area of Perth
from 1940 to 1975 before becoming redundant after the construction of the Canning Tunnel
in the mid-1970s. Until the construction of Serpentine Dam in 1961, Canning Dam and the channel were the main sources of water supply for Perth. Large sections of the disused channel and associated infrastructure remain and povide useful bush-walking routes.
In 1950 a section of the channel collapsed at Araluen
causing severe water restrictions in Perth for several weeks.
. After just over 200 meters, it enters a siphon to cross the Canning river. It then flows alongside McNess Drive down the Canning valley. A siphon is used to cross McNess Drive near the junction with Bristol Road and it also crosses the Canning river to the North bank. The channel flows to the north of Croyden Road into Roleystone
to a point above Brookton Highway, which is crossed with a siphon. The channel continues west, then north-west to cross Peet road between Knuckey Drive and Beales Crescent. It follows Contour Road to the west, and uses a siphon to cross Slab gully. Further channels and siphons continue west to cross Canning Mills Road near Martin Street, and then north, crossing Turner Road on its way to its destination in Martin on Mills Road.
for the Metropolitan Water Supply and was designed under the direction of several prominent engineers of the era: Russell Dumas
, E. W. Tindale, Victor Munt and Don Munro. Engineers E. H. Oldham and J. W. Allen supervised the construction project. This was the same team which had overseen the design and construction of the Canning Dam and which was completed in 1940. Construction commenced in June 1935 and was completed in January 1937.
The project was a considerable technical achievement which required a high degree of manual labour due to the hilly terrain which made it difficult to access with mechanical equipment. Most of the construction was carried out by unemployed men on relief work.
Prior to completion, water from the partially filled Canning Dam and the pipehead dam below was conveyed to Perth through a 762 millimetres (30 in) pipeline to Kelmscott and a 914 millimetres (36 in) pipeline from there to the storage reservoir at Mount Eliza
in Kings Park
. Once the dam wall was completed and the dam had filled the pipeline was discontinued. A 1.37 metres (4.5 ft) pipeline carried the water from Gosnells to Cannington where it was diverted to Fremantle
and King's Park.
320 men were laid off when construction was completed and the total cost of the project was £125,000, less than the estimated £155,000.
The typical profile of the Channel is a culvert approximately 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) wide at its base with raking sides at 45 degrees banking up to the natural ground level where the top of the channel is approximately 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide with a depth of approximately 1 metres (3.3 ft). The channel was cut from the natural ground or rock and then lined with concrete made from Western Australian made cement
mixed with locally sourced oolithic
laterite
aggregate.
Pipework across shallow gullies was typically cast iron of varying diameters, joined by lead seals. Deeper gullies were crossed using steel pipes joined by welding.
A separate contour channel ran north from Canning Dam to allow Mundaring Weir
to be replenished with water from Canning Dam. This is now inaccessible as it is within the Dam's water catchment areas. Another channel ran from Kangaroo Gully near Karragullen
into Canning Dam to augment the water catchment.
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
channels and steel and cast iron pipelines in the Darling Scarp
Darling Scarp
The Darling Scarp, also referred to as the Darling Range or Darling Ranges, is a low escarpment running north-south to the east of the Swan Coastal Plain and Perth, Western Australia...
in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
constructed between July 1935 and December 1936. The project was a Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
era public works scheme to carry potable water from just below Canning Dam
Canning Dam
The Canning Dam and reservoir provide a major fresh water resource for the city of Perth, Western Australia. The dam is situated on the Darling Scarp and is an impoundment of the Canning River. It is noted for its innovative structural and hydraulic design that was considered to be at the forefront...
through the hills around and above Roleystone
Roleystone, Western Australia
Roleystone is an outer southeastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Armadale.-History:Roleystone's name originates from a property purchased by Thomas Buckingham in 1858, upon which he built a sawmill in 1866. The town was also referred to as "The...
and Kelmscott
Kelmscott, Western Australia
Kelmscott is a southeastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Armadale, and it is located southeast of Perth along Albany Highway....
to a screening, flouridation and pumping station near Gosnells
Gosnells, Western Australia
The City of Gosnells is a Local Government Area in the southeastern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth, located northwest of Armadale and about southeast of Perth's central business district...
by following the natural contours of the Canning Valley—hence it was entirely gravity fed. Where a tributary valley needed to be crossed, suspended or siphoning pipelines were used. From Gosnells the water entered the city's pipeline distribution system.
The channel supplied drinking water to the metropolitan area of Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
from 1940 to 1975 before becoming redundant after the construction of the Canning Tunnel
Canning Tunnel
The Canning Tunnel was constructed between 1973 and 1975 to link Canning Dam to Perth's Integrated Water Supply System. It was built to replace the Canning Contour Channel which was a depression era public works project of the 1940s and constructed in conjunction with the opening of the dam.The...
in the mid-1970s. Until the construction of Serpentine Dam in 1961, Canning Dam and the channel were the main sources of water supply for Perth. Large sections of the disused channel and associated infrastructure remain and povide useful bush-walking routes.
In 1950 a section of the channel collapsed at Araluen
Araluen
Araluen may refer to:* Araluen Centre for Arts and Entertainment in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia* Araluen, New South Wales, a small town near Braidwood, in south-eastern New South Wales, Australia...
causing severe water restrictions in Perth for several weeks.
Course
The channel starts at a stilling chamber on the north bank of the Canning river, just below the Canning DamCanning Dam
The Canning Dam and reservoir provide a major fresh water resource for the city of Perth, Western Australia. The dam is situated on the Darling Scarp and is an impoundment of the Canning River. It is noted for its innovative structural and hydraulic design that was considered to be at the forefront...
. After just over 200 meters, it enters a siphon to cross the Canning river. It then flows alongside McNess Drive down the Canning valley. A siphon is used to cross McNess Drive near the junction with Bristol Road and it also crosses the Canning river to the North bank. The channel flows to the north of Croyden Road into Roleystone
Roleystone, Western Australia
Roleystone is an outer southeastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Armadale.-History:Roleystone's name originates from a property purchased by Thomas Buckingham in 1858, upon which he built a sawmill in 1866. The town was also referred to as "The...
to a point above Brookton Highway, which is crossed with a siphon. The channel continues west, then north-west to cross Peet road between Knuckey Drive and Beales Crescent. It follows Contour Road to the west, and uses a siphon to cross Slab gully. Further channels and siphons continue west to cross Canning Mills Road near Martin Street, and then north, crossing Turner Road on its way to its destination in Martin on Mills Road.
Construction
It was built by the Public Works DepartmentPublic Works Department (Western Australia)
-History:The Public Works Department is a now defunct government of Western Australia which was charged with providing and maintaining public infrastructure such as dams, water supplies, schools, hospitals, harbours and other public buildings....
for the Metropolitan Water Supply and was designed under the direction of several prominent engineers of the era: Russell Dumas
Russell Dumas
Sir Russell John Dumas KBE, CMG was a public servant and engineer who led several large works projects in Western Australia.-Early life:Dumas was born in Mount Barker, South Australia to a family of five children...
, E. W. Tindale, Victor Munt and Don Munro. Engineers E. H. Oldham and J. W. Allen supervised the construction project. This was the same team which had overseen the design and construction of the Canning Dam and which was completed in 1940. Construction commenced in June 1935 and was completed in January 1937.
The project was a considerable technical achievement which required a high degree of manual labour due to the hilly terrain which made it difficult to access with mechanical equipment. Most of the construction was carried out by unemployed men on relief work.
Prior to completion, water from the partially filled Canning Dam and the pipehead dam below was conveyed to Perth through a 762 millimetres (30 in) pipeline to Kelmscott and a 914 millimetres (36 in) pipeline from there to the storage reservoir at Mount Eliza
Mount Eliza, Western Australia
Mount Eliza is a hill which overlooks the city of Perth, Western Australia and forms part of Kings Park. It is known as Kaarta gar-up and Mooro Katta in the local Noongar dialect....
in Kings Park
Kings Park, Western Australia
Kings Park is a park located on the western edge of Perth, Western Australia central business district. The park is a mixture of grassed parkland, botanical gardens and natural bushland on Mount Eliza with two thirds of the grounds conserved as native bushland. With panoramic views of the Swan...
. Once the dam wall was completed and the dam had filled the pipeline was discontinued. A 1.37 metres (4.5 ft) pipeline carried the water from Gosnells to Cannington where it was diverted to Fremantle
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
and King's Park.
320 men were laid off when construction was completed and the total cost of the project was £125,000, less than the estimated £155,000.
The typical profile of the Channel is a culvert approximately 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) wide at its base with raking sides at 45 degrees banking up to the natural ground level where the top of the channel is approximately 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide with a depth of approximately 1 metres (3.3 ft). The channel was cut from the natural ground or rock and then lined with concrete made from Western Australian made cement
Cement
In the most general sense of the word, a cement is a binder, a substance that sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. The word "cement" traces to the Romans, who used the term opus caementicium to describe masonry resembling modern concrete that was made from crushed...
mixed with locally sourced oolithic
Oolite
Oolite is a sedimentary rock formed from ooids, spherical grains composed of concentric layers. The name derives from the Hellenic word òoion for egg. Strictly, oolites consist of ooids of diameter 0.25–2 mm; rocks composed of ooids larger than 2 mm are called pisolites...
laterite
Laterite
Laterites are soil types rich in iron and aluminium, formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are rusty-red because of iron oxides. They develop by intensive and long-lasting weathering of the underlying parent rock...
aggregate.
Pipework across shallow gullies was typically cast iron of varying diameters, joined by lead seals. Deeper gullies were crossed using steel pipes joined by welding.
A separate contour channel ran north from Canning Dam to allow Mundaring Weir
Mundaring Weir
Mundaring Weir is the name of a dam which are located from Perth, Western Australia in the Darling Scarp. It is situated in the Mundaring locality...
to be replenished with water from Canning Dam. This is now inaccessible as it is within the Dam's water catchment areas. Another channel ran from Kangaroo Gully near Karragullen
Karragullen, Western Australia
Karragullen is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, located within the City of Armadale. Its postcode is 6111.Prior to 1949 it was a stopping place on the Upper Darling Range Railway....
into Canning Dam to augment the water catchment.