2014 – Crack Repair on Outlet Conduits – The Hunt for the Appropriate Method
Suraj Neupane, Paul Southcott, and Tung Hoang
Conglomerate Dam has multiple cracks along the asbestos cement outlet conduits running through the embankment. The reservoir level has been maintained at 2m below the full supply level to reduce the amount of seepage, emerging on the downstream face, until the conduits are repaired and protect the embankment from slope instability and piping. Several methods were investigated under an options study to determine the most suitable internal lining method. Slip lining with polyethylene pipe was found to be the most suitable method in terms of technology as well as cost.
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Papers 2014
2014 – Voëlvlei Dam – A Reservoir in Flux
Learn moreJN Rossouw, AHM Görgens and PC Blersch
Shallow lakes or reservoirs generally exist in either of two stable states; a clear water state dominated by rooted water plants, or a turbid state dominated by free floating algae. A dramatic event can switch a shallow reservoir from one state to another. Voëlvlei Dam, a relatively shallow off-channel storage reservoir in the Berg River catchment, South Africa, switched from a stable, clear water system to a turbid, algal dominated system when it was severely drawn down during a drought in the mid-2000s.
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It appears that there is tipping point beyond which a shallow reservoir can switch from one stable state to another and that there are buffers that maintain it in a specific state. Voëlvlei Dam is a good example of what such a switch might be (low water levels and high wind mixing) and what buffers (change to bottom-feeding fish species) may maintain it in the new state. It is only by understanding the hydrodynamic behaviour of a shallow reservoir that one can predict what these switches and buffers could be. Complex hydrodynamic modelling and comprehensive fish monitoring will facilitate more informed decision making and better management of reservoirs.
This paper describes the mechanisms that lead to the switch and how it can be prevented by developing an understanding of the hydrodynamic behaviour of shallow reservoirs through hydrodynamic water quality modelling. -
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Papers 2014
2014 – The Appropriate Small Dam and Hydropower Project – Appropriate Hydropower Civil Design for Developing Countries
Learn moreRobert Kingsland, Andy Noble and Dr Eric Lam
Engineering design is necessarily context specific. However, engineering design produced in industrialised nations often comes encumbered with design methods, standards and construction process familiarities that can result in inappropriate design solutions for developing nations. This is no more apparent than with the design of small hydropower projects where budgets are small and the implications of poor decisions can easily threaten the viability of schemes.
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In this paper we explore the challenges and opportunities for the scheme’s developer and designer, in striking an appropriate balance on engineering solutions that remain appropriate for the local construction practices. In most cases, based on our experiences from small, run-of-river developments, the available methods for feasibility study data collection, including geotechnical investigations and hydrology assessments, are in themselves a challenge. Consequently, the designer needs to work with what is readily available and often has to reset the established thinking to incorporate practical constructability into the designs, while giving special attention to the operation and maintenance aspects. More labour-intensive methods are not uncommon.
The stakeholders in small hydropower schemes are many: the community, the approval agencies, the lenders, the developers, the local construction industry, the government. Design decisions cannot be made in a vacuum. However, designers are often distant from the social, political, environmental and commercial context of their project. This separation can present significant challenges which, without due attention, can result in poor design outcomes.
This paper will, with reference to examples of good and poor design, discuss various facets of small hydropower development from a civil engineering perspective including, the scale of development, design methods, stakeholder engagement, local content involvement, constructability and financing. The paper concludes with suggestions for improving design outcomes for small hydropower projects. -
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Papers 2014
2014 – Stockman Project Tailings Storage Facility Closure
Learn moreStephen Newman, Rod Jacobs, and Dr John Yeates
Independence Group (IGO) is assessing the feasibility of re-commissioning a closed copper-zinc mine in Victoria. Due to the acid producing potential of the mine tailings if exposed to oxygen they are to be contained in a saturated condition not only during the life of the mine but well beyond closure and effectively in perpetuity. The tailings are to be stored in a saturated condition underground in the mining void however due to the limited volume available approximately half of the tailings produced over the mine life will require containment in a purpose built surface Tailings Storage Facility that would need to perform as a water retaining structure.
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This paper describes key challenges with tailings management including demonstrating the viability of maintaining permanent saturation of the tailings and the long term integrity of the structure. Excessive poor quality seepage, piping and other failure modes have also been considered in the long term design of the closed Tailings Storage Facility. A surveillance program to provide early identification of potential issues has also been developed.
The design is consistent with ANCOLD guidelines and used a risk based approach to assess key issues associated with the extended design life. -
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Papers 2014
2014 – Beyond Quantitative ALARP – Re-Focussing Paradigms for Dam Safety Risk Management in a Changed Legal Environment
Learn moreDennis C. Green
Current good practice for risk management as represented in ANCOLD guidelines emphasises risk reduction beyond tolerable risk levels to As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP). Risk reduction reflected in key design parameters such as the spillway design flood is monitored on a quantitative basis, while the guidelines also draw attention to a number of non-quantifiable measures.
Recent work health and safety legislation in Australia does not at first appear to relate to dam safety, but it mandates elimination of risk, and, if that is not possible, then it mandates reduction of risk So Far As Is Reasonably Practicable (SFAIRP). It is tempting to believe that this is equivalent to ANCOLD’s approach to ALARP, but the devil is in the detail of the legislation. This paper argues for a change to a more systematic presentation of recording of decisions on dam safety risk management, lest the legislation expose dam owners unwittingly to liability when they thought they were following good practice. In particular, the re-focussing of ANCOLD Guidelines to align more recognisably with the new legal paradigm, including preparation and adoption of a Safety Case, is recommended.
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Papers 2014
2014 – Wivenhoe Somerset Dam Optimisation Study – Simulating Dam Operations for Numerous Floods
Learn moreMichel Raymond
This paper presents the methods used to apply a Flood Operation Simulation Model, and the methods used to present results of thousands of flood simulations in a way that different operational options could be compared. The approach was found to be valuable to understand the capacity of the dams to mitigate floods. The study identified shortcomings for the conventional design event approach to flood estimation. A broader range of stochastic floods was an advantage to assess flood mitigation performance and extreme floods of interest to dam safety.
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