Warragamba dam level report deadline too short, traditional owners say

Indigenous custodians say document looking at impact of flooding parts of Blue Mountains is hard to follow

Traditional owners say they have not been given enough time to assess the cultural heritage impact of a plan to raise the wall of Warragamba dam and flood world heritage-listed areas of the Blue Mountains, as two local mayors demand that a state government representative faces community concerns at a public meeting this Friday.

The New South Wales government wants to raise the dam wall by at least 14 metres to reduce flood risks to western Sydney suburbs downstream. But green groups, Aboriginal traditional owners and Unesco are against the proposal, with the world heritage committee announcing last month that it was "likely to have an impact on the outstanding universal value" of the area.