2014 – Oaky River Dam Failure
George Samios and Steve Gough
Following an extreme flood event late on Friday 22nd February 2013, water overtopped the dam crest leading to total collapse of the dam’s right embankment and a span of the nearby intake tower access bridge as well as the cutting of power to the dam gates. The dam’s left embankment was also severely damaged. Options considered for remediation of the dam include decommissioning or reinstatement and upgrading to NSW Dams Safety Committee requirements.
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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 – Weirs – What Risk Do They Really Pose to Your Business?
Learn moreKathryn Whalley and Bob Clark
When Seqwater was established in 2008 it inherited from local governments 51 weirs of varying ages, sizes, design standards and condition. In order to better understand these structures, in 2012 Seqwater engaged NSW Public Works to undertake a condition and risk assessment of its weir portfolio. The assessment, consisting of a background review, site inspections, stability assessment and a collaborative risk workshop, examined risks to the structures, to Seqwater personnel and the public. Assessment of the risk consequences used Seqwater’s recent experience with repairs to weirs damaged in the 2011 and 2013 Queensland floods. The assessment was completed in 2013 and identified more than 1000 risks. It was recommended that more than 600 moderate to high risks be reduced through a prioritised program over the next 10 years. Weir performance following the 2011 and 2013 floods is also discussed.
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Papers 2014
2014 – Adapting Water Supply Dams for Flood Mitigation and the Complexities Associated
Learn moreBronson McPherson, David Guest, Barton Maher, Ian Tanner and Amit Chanan
There is significant community interest in the potential for water supply dams to be adapted for flood mitigation, particularly for major dams located upstream of flood vulnerable populations. There may be a number of large dams which have the potential to provide significant flood mitigation benefits to Australian communities if they can be adapted for flood mitigation functionality. Other dams already provide significant flood mitigation benefits, however their limitations are not properly understood by the general public. Two major dams located near a large urban town centre prone to flooding are examined as a case study and some international cases are presented.
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Flood mitigation often has a different funding source to water supply. The funding arrangements for flood mitigation dam works can be complex, considering the potential stakeholders and somewhat intangible benefits. If the community wants to use a water supply dam to provide flood mitigation then who provides the funding for the modification works? -
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Papers 2014
2014 – Cracking and Dam Safety of a 100 Year Old Puddle Core Embankment
Learn moreGavan Hunter, David Jeffery and Chris Kelly
Laanecoorie Reservoir, located in central Victoria, passed 3 significant floods in late 2010 to early 2011; the last flood being the highest on record since 1909. Significant cracking and deformation of this 100 year old puddle core earthfill embankment occurred. A series of longitudinal cracks up to 25 mm in width opened up in the crest over a length of 70 m and crest settlements were up to 70 mm; very large for a dam of this age. A significant difference at Laanecoorie compared to other similar dams is that it experiences high tail water levels during major flooding.
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Investigations into the embankment following the January 2011 flood encountered several defects
including a decomposed tree root hole (large void up to 90 mm) that almost fully penetrated the raised section of puddle core, permeable gravel layers within the puddle core and transverse cracks up to 2 mm wide. The encountered defects and performance of the embankment many years after construction highlighted the deterioration that can occur with aging of these older embankments and the issues associated with poor past practices in tree management adjacent to dam embankments.
Dam safety upgrade works were undertaken in 2013 to address the identified piping and stability risks.
The works included construction of a filter buttress, replacement of a length of the raised puddle core and construction of a buried gabion wall on the left abutment to provide protection against scour should the secondary spillway fail or overtop.
GMW implemented a series of actions during the flood events in accordance with the Dam Safety
Emergency Plan (DSEP) to address cracking and deformation. Once aware of the dam safety risks, interim actions were implemented including increased frequency of monitoring, together with set up and measurement of crack pins, and temporary survey markers on the embankment. -
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Papers 2014
2014 – Keepit Fishway Offsets: Mollee Weir Fish Lock and Downstream Multi-Function Migration Gate – Integrating Form and Function
Learn moreSteven Slarke, Dr Martin Mallen-Cooper and Marcos Guirguis
Keepit Fishway Offsets
Fish passage structures are being provided by State Water Corporation as part of a strategic program to address fish passage barriers that triggered S218 of the Fisheries Management Act 1994 at Mollee Weir, Gunidgera Weir and Weeta Weir in the Namoi River. These sites are an offset for dam safety upgrade works on Keepit and Split Rock dams in the headwaters of the Namoi River. Rather than applying high-level fish lifts at the dams, the three lowland sites represent the top three ecological priorities in the Namoi River for fish passage facilities – a case of less cost for greater ecological outcomes. The objective of the fish passage facilities at these sites is to restore upstream and downstream fish passage for about fifteen native fish species. The key biological objectives are to pass adult and juvenile fish upstream and adult fish and larvae (which drift with the current) downstream.Mollee Weir
Mollee Weir was constructed in 1973 on the Namoi River downstream of Keepit Dam, near Narrabri in northern NSW. The nine-metre high weir is used for irrigation and comprises a reinforced concrete structure featuring three bays with undershot gates and two piers. The upstream and downstream water levels are highly variable, with a maximum differential head of about six metres. Fish are unable to pass the weir during regulated and unregulated flows; even when the undershot gates are fully raised in high flows, due to high velocities in the opened weir. The weir’s large undershot gates are also a barrier to safe downstream fish passage during regulated flows. High water pressures and velocities beneath the partially raised gates create a high mortality rate for fish and larvae moving downstream.Fish Passage and Regulator Structure
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Designed for State Water NSW by URS Australia Pty Ltd in cooperation with Dr Martin Mallen-Cooper of Fishway Consulting services, Mollee Weir features a new fish lock for upstream-migrating fish and a dedicated overshot gate with dissipating pools for downstream-migrating fish, and was constructed during 2013 to 2014.
It is the tallest fish lock in Australia that is filled from the top.
The innovative design features two separate downstream fish holding bays and two fish lock entrance gates, to provide optimal entrance conditions at varying river flows and water levels.
To provide safe downstream fish passage at low to moderate river flows, a 4 m wide ‘downstream multi-function migration gate’ has been integrated beside the fish lock structure. This overshot gate also provides an attraction flow to the fish lock entrances, and tracks the upstream water level at high river flows to provide a high discharge pool and weir fishway as a bypass around the weir structure.
The Mollee Weir fish lock provides upstream fish passage for the full range of upstream and downstream water levels.