Suma Park Dam is a concrete arch dam across the Summer Hill Creek in the central west region of New South Wales, Australia. The main purpose of the dam is to supply potable water to the city of Orange. The impounded reservoir is called Suma Park Reservoir.

Location and features

The dam is located 4 km east of Orange; with the secondary water source, Spring Creek Reservoir, located to the south-east of Orange. Built in 1962, Suma Park Dam is owned and maintained by Orange City Council. Prior to the construction of Suma Park Dam, Lake Canobolas (then known as Meadow Creek Dam) on the Molong Creek was also used as a domestic water source. The Suma Park Dam 18 m3 concrete wall is 31 m high and the arch crest is 208 m long, with a crest width of 2.4 m. At 100% capacity the dam wall holds back 17290 ML of water. The surface area of Suma Park Reservoir is 1.3 km2 and the catchment area is 179 km2. The uncontrolled 62 m spillway is capable of discharging 260 m3/s.

Upgrade

Surveillance and dam safety inspections are conducted regularly by the Orange City Council. In 2005 and 2010, the dam overflowed. In 2011, the Council published a report giving options for raising the height of the dam.