2013 – Maroon Dam: A multi-analytical approach for a multi-purpose dam
Iain Lonie, Malcolm Barker and Colin Thompson
Consideration of flood mitigation benefits, water supply, irrigation and recreational usage played an instrumental role in developing the proposed upgrade for Maroon Dam to meet dam safety and flood capacity requirements. Maroon Dam is a 47.4 m high zoned earthfill dam completed in 1974. The dam is a multi-purpose reservoir which is now owned and operated by Seqwater and plays an important role in the local community. Key drivers for the proposed upgrade design included embankment stability, foundation concerns, piping, spillway capacity and erosion of the embankment toe.
Six options were reduced to three through a high level screening exercise. A more detailed assessment of the remaining options was undertaken using a Multi Criteria Analysis and a detailed risk assessment. Consideration of the competing uses of the reservoir was critical in the development and assessment of the preferred option. This paper will present the details of the analytical methods used as input for the Multi Criteria Analysis and the detailed risk assessment for the final proposed design option that will meet the requirements of dam safety and flood capacity without impacting on water supply, irrigation and recreational usage.
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Papers 2013
2013 – Past and present usage of the Chelsea Estate dams
Learn moreTim Gillon and Grant Murray
Chelsea Estate is located on the edge of the Waitemata Harbour, and is only ten minutes drive from Auckland central business district. Within Chelsea Estate are four ‘low’ potential impact classification (PIC) dams, which cascade along Duck Creek. Three of the dams are over 100 years old and all dams were built from 1884 to 1917. The dams and the reservoirs have served, and continue to serve, several purposes including stormwater retention, recreational use and water supply for the adjacent sugar factory. In 2008 Auckland Council (AC) purchased the Chelsea Estate from the New Zealand Sugar Company (NZSC) and in 2009 the Estate was registered in the New Zealand Historic Places Trust (NZHPT). This paper discusses the history and functionality of the multi-function Chelsea Estate dams, the development of the site and how it impacts our understanding of the dams today.
Keywords: Chelsea Estate, multi-function dams, heritage dams.
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Papers 2013
2013 – Effects of earthquake design ground motions on the seismic response of upstream-raised tailings dams
Learn moreHendra Jitno
Upstream construction methodology has been used to raise tailings dams in Western Australia (WA) for more than three decades, and the tailings storage facilities (TSFs) built in this manner have performed satisfactorily so far. The maximum design earthquake (MDE) for most of the existing, upstream-raised TSFs in WA was that corresponding to a 1-in-1,000 year annual exceedance probability (1:1,000 AEP). However, the recommended MDE loading for the High/Extreme Failure Consequence Category in the 2012 ANCOLD Guidelines on Tailings Dams is that of a 1:10,000 AEP. This more stringent seismic design criterion may restrict the use of upstream TSF construction in some areas of WA and Australia in general.
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To evaluate the viability of upstream construction for a new or existing TSF, the effects of the earthquake design ground motion (EDGM) on the liquefaction and deformation response of the structure must be understood. The results of such analyses are an essential component in determining whether upstream raising will be feasible, or whether more robust but much more costly centreline or downstream construction methods are required.
A parametric study was completed to investigate the liquefaction and deformation behaviour of a typical, upstream-raised tailings dam under different earthquake design ground motions with different response spectra. The study utilized two-dimensional finite difference code FLAC2D effective stress dynamic analysis, in which the UBCSAND constitutive soil model was incorporated. Twenty-eight earthquake ground motions (matched and unmatched to the target response spectrum) were used in the study and the liquefaction response of the tailings dam model under those ground motions was analysed.
The results of the study demonstrate the importance of appropriate ground motion and response spectrum selection in assessing the seismic performance of an upstream-raised TSF. Liquefaction response was shown to vary with different response spectra, even though the corresponding EDGMs had similar peak ground acceleration (PGA) values. The importance of earthquake frequency content and duration, which in turn are affected by earthquake magnitude, distance and ground motion response, is emphasized. Scaling and matching the earthquake input motion to the uniform hazard response spectrum (UHRS) may result in overly-conservative design. Thus, selection of the most representative EDGM is essential to evaluating expected seismic performance for an upstream-raised TSF, and scaling or matching the earthquake input motions must be done cautiously. -
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Papers 2013
2013 – Managing the risk of under-designed spillway training walls: an owner’s guide
Learn moreChris Topham, Eoin Nicholson and David Tanner
A number of Australian dams have spillways with reinforced concrete training walls designed in the 1950/60s to the standards of the day, but which could be considered under-designed according to modern criteria. Such walls commonly retain significant depths of earth and rockfill embankment materials, where structural failure of the wall could seriously compromise the safety of the dam. This paper presents the journey to mitigate the risk of such training walls, drawing primarily on experience in managing structurally deficient spillway training walls for a High Consequence Category dam in northern Tasmania. Reflections from each step of the risk management process are presented, including how the portfolio risk assessment contributed to a focus on the dam as a whole, and how that led to more detailed analysis and evaluation of the training wall risk. The use of instrumentation and enhanced surveillance for risk monitoring is discussed, including how real-time deformation data ultimately led to installation of temporary wall bracing works and enhanced contingency planning. The long-term risk treatment for the walls is presented, comprising a $6m structural upgrade to the training walls completed in 2013. The paper concludes with the learnings from the risk management journey and highlights the range of interventions available to owners with similar spillway training walls.
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Papers 2013
2013 – A case study: how to minimise risks associated with a portfolio of non-revenue generating dams
Learn moreMonique de Moel and Gamini Adikari
Parks Victoria manages over 4 million hectares of parkland and a portfolio of over $1.9 billion worth of infrastructure assets. Within this portfolio, Parks Victoria is responsible for a large number of dams and their associated structures. Consequence category of these dams varies from Extreme to Very Low. Parks Victoria recognised that these assets required a dam safety management and monitoring program. The development of a program commenced with a portfolio risk assessment in 1998 which progressed to detailed design reviews of a selected number of dams and the initiation of an ongoing dam safety and surveillance program. This initial work identified the need for dam safety upgrade works within this asset portfolio which Parks Victoria has been progressively addressing. In 2012 Parks Victoria identified that a review of the risk profile of the dams was warranted. The review included consideration of alternative options such as staging of works, reducing storage volume and decommissioning, as well as non-technical considerations such as increasing the recreational use and the environmental value of these assets. This paper outlines the approach adopted by Parks Victoria in developing and improving its dam safety program and how it has assisted in minimising dam safety risks. Specifically, Parks Victoria’s approach of adopting measures that recognize the purpose and benefits of the individual storages, whilst being sympathetic to the requirements of the other infrastructure within its diverse portfolio of assets is highlighted. Since this work commenced in 1998, Parks Victoria have been successful in the development of an effective dam safety and management program which has resulted in the reduction of risks associated with this portfolio of assets.
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Papers 2013
2013 – Eel bypass for downstream migration on the Waikato River
Learn moreAlan Collins and Michelle Archer
The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand. Mighty River Power operates nine dams on the river with a combined net head of 335 m. The reservoirs have limited storage capacity so that the Waikato Hydro System is effectively a continuous run of the river scheme, providing constant generation for the New Zealand electricity grid. The river is also the habitat of the New Zealand Longfin and Shortfin Eel. Before the dams were constructed, eels naturally migrated as small elvers and lived as far upstream as the Arapuni gorge, where a waterfall prevented them from travelling further upstream. The commissioning of the Karapiro dam in 1947 reduced the natural habitat of the eels. In recent years, the eel population has been declining through a variety of anthropogenic factors and protective status is being called for. An elver catch and release program commenced at Karapiro Dam in 1992. This transferred elvers as far upstream as Lake Ohakuri and significantly increased the available habitat for the elvers to grow into adult eels. Spawning adults migrate downstream and back out to sea and as a result most of these eels are killed by turbines at the hydro stations. While consent conditions don’t stipulate it, Mighty River Power is committed to being an environmentally responsible custodian of the Waikato River and is dedicated in efforts to preserve the eel fishery. Mighty River Power recognises the importance of eel to local iwi; particularly highlighted by the emphasis on eel in the Waikato River Independent Scoping Study. The Karapiro eel bypass project, started in 2010, sought to investigate and research means to assist downstream eel migration. Research was gathered into eel searching patterns, timing of eel migration, durability in high velocities and other survival factors. This information was used to design, construct, and test a prototype downstream eel bypass at the Karapiro dam, something that had not been built on a dam this size before. In the 2013 migration season, three eels safely used the bypass. Plans are in place to improve the performance of the bypass in the coming seasons. Mighty River Power wishes to share the lessons learnt from this project with other dam operators for the conservation of this important species.
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