The completion of the Bookmark Creek revitalisation project near Renmark, South Australia, marks a significant achievement in enhancing both environmental outcomes and community value, with AWMA proud to have supplied the specialist water control infrastructure at the heart of the works.
AWMA was engaged by Fulton Hogan on behalf the Department for Environment and Water (DEW), the project features a custom-engineered 2-in-1 AWMA MultiBay LayFlat Gate. The structure forms part of the $37.6 million Sustaining Riverland Environments (SRE) Program, funded by the Australian Government through the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, aimed at restoring natural flows, improving fish passage, and supporting regional sustainability across the Riverland.
Bookmark Creek is a ten-kilometre anabranch of the River Murray that bypasses Lock 5, creating the opportunity for fast flowing habitat due to the 3m difference in pool level from upstream to downstream. The creek provides important native fish habitat and recreational value for the Renmark community, but restricted flows had long limited its ecological potential. The new regulator now enables precise control of water movement, allowing flows to increase up to five times, improving water quality and re-establishing natural conditions.
Believed to be an Australian first, the structure combines an inlet regulator, fishway, canoe chute, canoe portage ramp and pedestrian bridge within a single integrated design. AWMA’s LayFlat Gate provides flow isolation and regulation through a tilting weir-style gate, engineered for responsive and efficient operation in open-channel applications. The gate is constructed from marine grade aluminium and features a raised headstock assembly, low-profile covers, an access walkway, and is operated via hydraulic motors. The system is supplied with a portable Hydraulic Power Unit (HPU), allowing safe and precise operation.
The regulator accommodates a channel width of 5300mm, with a top-of-structure height of 3100mm. The maximum operating head is 2100mm, with a maximum flood level of 3900mm. The project also included the installation of three fishway stopboards and frames. These segmented stoplogs, also fabricated from marine-grade aluminium with grade 316 stainless steel frames, provide manual flow isolation and level regulation. Each stoplog features lifting lugs, horizontal base seals, and side seals mounted within the frame, allowing two operators to safely insert or remove the segments using AWMA lifting ladders.
The Bookmark Creek Regulator highlights how innovative engineering can deliver lasting environmental and community benefits. AWMA is proud to have partnered with DEW and Fulton Hogan to help realise this landmark project, demonstrating the value of smart water management, precision engineering, and collaboration in sustaining Australia’s waterways.
Photos courtesy of DEW and Fulton Hogan. For more information click to visit DEW
