CLAYTON BAY - There were calm heads from the freshwater and saltwater camps of the Lower Lakes at a community meeting about the Clayton Bay regulator removal on Tuesday, September 20.
About 30 people from the town and surrounding areas sat a lot more quietly than they did at the meeting in May to hear about the process, with the only slightly heated discussion from the group about some live River Murray data stations not being available.
Work to remove the regulator is expected to start by the middle of October.
During phase one of the process, an on-land excavator will be used to remove the main body of the regulator, followed by a barge to remove the remaining section which lies underwater during stage two.
Department for Water program leader, River Murray works and measures Dan Croucher said about 110,000 cubic metres of imported "clean fill" sand is expected to be removed from the site by the time phases one and two are complete.
Mr Croucher said about 50,000 to 60,000 cubic metres of imported material is expected to be left in the Goolwa Channel; this is to allow for a "mixed zone", where the imported material has mixed with the Channel's soils, and a 1.5-metre buffer zone on top of the mixed zone, which will act as a stabiliser for the channel's wall once the main body is removed.
A contract to start the works has not yet been finalised, but the tender process had closed early this month.
Mr Croucher said the imported material will be stored within two kilometres of the regulator, but exactly where and who owned the land could not be identified as it is confidential.
Department for Water director Murray Darling Basin operations Andrew Beal said the material would definitiely not be placed in the same quarry where it was sourced from.
Mr Beal said it is estimated it will take about 15 weeks to complete phase one, depending on site conditions and other variables that arise.
Regulator bathymetry tests will be taken.
A phase three may be engaged to help level the Channel floor, depending on works from phase one.
Clayton Bay resident Trevor Harden said there maybe no point to engaging in a phase three because of the changes that have happened to the site and surrounding areas over time anyway.
Works will happen six days a week and have a maximum operating time between 7am and 6pm.
Mr Croucher said he felt "ecstatic" to be at this point.
"Twelve months ago we were talking in Milang about the breach because short term measures had been met," he said.
"We're as excited about getting it out as everybody else."
When a question from the audience was raised about if it would ever go in again, Mr Beal said "the prospect of building it again is a very big call".
Clayton Bay Community Association president Tim Roberts said the meeting was "a positive indication about how they were going to remove it".
"Everybody's keen to see it go.
"As long as the country learns from our mistakes from the Murray Darling Basin so it doesn't have to go in again."
About 200,000 tonnes of material had been transferred to build the 400 metre long by 10 metre wide structure.
This weekend marks the first anniversary since the regulator was breached, when 9,000 tonnes of material was removed from the site.
Work to built the regulator started in August 2009 to combat the threat of acid-sulfate soils.
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