Raised Warragamba Dam wall risks ‘irreversible harm’ to Aboriginal cultural heritage, NSW report says

The proposal to raise NSW’s Warragamba Dam wall would have a ‘deleterious effect’ on cultural heritage values, the report says. Photograph: Carly Earl/The Guardian

The $1.6bn plan to raise the Warragamba Dam wall would cause “irreversible harm” to Aboriginal cultural heritage, a New South Wales government-commissioned report has found.

Suggesting it is open to Unesco to “provide for modifications to the boundaries of World Heritage properties”, the report said the controversial project could also lead to hundreds of sites of Aboriginal cultural heritage suffering increased flooding, including the “total loss” of some sites.