The Elliot Lake - Little Lake catchment is located south of Lake Illawarra. This catchment covers approximately 12.4km2 and includes the suburbs of Barrack Heights, Shellharbour, Flinders, Blackbutt, Mt Warrigal and Warilla. The catchment includes mainly residential areas with some business and light industry. Blackbutt Nature Reserve lies at the heart of the study area. The main waterways of the catchment are Bensons Creek, Benson Tributary and Tongarra Creek. Bensons Creek drains the northern section of the area, while Tongarra Creek drains the southern section. Both creeks drain into Elliot Lake which discharges into the ocean at Barrack Point.

Flooding in the catchment area is mostly caused by runoff from Bensons Creek in the north and Tongarra Creek in the south. This can result in widespread flooding due to the limited capacity of the pipe drainage systems and flow paths in the area. Flooding has occurred in the catchment on a number of occasions, with the most recent serious event in March 2011.

Program scheduleStatus
Data collectionCommenced 2002
Flood studyAdopted January 2006
Data collection/consultationApril 2012
Floodplain Risk Management StudyAdopted October 2016
Floodplain Risk Management PlanAdopted October 2016
Last updated : Sun 17 Feb 2019