Lake Eildon
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Lake Eildon is the impoundment created by Eildon Weir on the Goulburn River in southern Victoria, Australia. At 3,390,000 ML when full, it contains six times as much water as Sydney Harbour and is the second largest water storage in Victoria. It is located within Lake Eildon National Park.
The lake was created in several stages. The first dam was constructed between 1915 and 1929, creating what was then known as Sugarloaf Reservoir. The storage was enlarged to 377,000 ML in 1935, and then enlarged almost tenfold between 1951 and 1955. On average, 91% of the water from Lake Eildon goes to the Goulburn Weir and the Waranga Basin before it flows to irrigators in the Goulburn Valley system.
In recent years, Lake Eildon has rarely filled, and the once-thriving holiday destinations around the lake have been unable to attract visitors, leading to considerable economic hardship. Although water is in great demand for agriculture, careful regulation has kept outflows fairly static. The drop in storage levels is attributed to long-term climate change, part of the worldwide global warming trend.
The nearby town of Bonnie Doon was the location for the holiday scenes in the movie, The Castle.
