ASSIGNMENT ONE

GROUP MEMBERS

Tapiwanaishe Maundu N0095245J

FACULTY: INDUSTRIAL TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT: CIVIL AND WATER ENGINEERING

COURSE: HYDRAULIC DESIGN II

LECTURER: DR EGN A. CHINYAMA

Due 13 April 2018 at 4pm

QUESTION 1

SITE INVESTIGATION IN DAM ENGINEERING

A site investigation in dam engineering is an assessment of site geologic and geotechnical

conditions. The primary purpose of geological site investigations for a dam project is provide the
information that dam designers require in order to design a safe dam structure and to be able to
estimate with reasonable accuracy how much the dam is going to cost.
PURPOSE OF SITE INVESTIGATIONS
British Standard Code of Practice BS5930 site investigations, lists the following as the main
objectives of a site investigation:
1. To assess the general suitability of the site for the proposed work
2. To foresee and provide against difficulties that may arise during construction due to
ground and other local conditions
3. To enable an adequate and economic design to be prepared.
4. To predict any adverse effect of the proposed construction on neighbouring structures
A site investigation is carried out to provide the following information and its relevance to dam
engineering.
i. The type of rocks and soil present, including the sequence of strata, the nature and
thickness of superficial deposits and the presence of igneous intrusions. How they are
distributed over and under the site allow for the determination of the depth of overburden
that must be removed to reach an acceptable foundation for the dam wall;
ii. The frequency and orientation of joints in the different bodies of rock and location of any
faults. A full description of the defect pattern in the rock mass should include orientation,
spacing, extent or persistence and aperture or openness; how permeable is the rock
foundation.
iii. The ground water conditions, including the position of the water table and whether the
ground water noxious material in solution, such as sulphates which may affect the dam
structure.
iv. Where can adequate supplies of construction materials such as clay, sand, gravel and rock
fill be obtained, preferably as close as possible to the dam site
v. The suitability of local rocks and soils, especially those excavated, as construction
materials.
vi. Special information such as seismicity of the region may also be required
vii. Will the spillway require concrete lining and an energy dissipation structure at its
downstream end or is the spillway rock sufficiently erosion resistant that these can be
omitted?
SITE INVESTIGATION PROCESSES
SURVEYING
Surveying is an essential support for a geologist, who must always be able to locate more or less
accurately the formations he observes both in planimetry and in altimetry. Survey allows for the
plotting of topographical cross-section on the dam axis and is also useful in estimating the dam’s
volume from the beginning of the studies
PHOTOGEOLOGY
Geological interpretation of aerial photographs (in stereo pairs) can be a useful complement to
classic mapping. The analysis of aerial photographs (preferably recent ones) also gives
indications on plant cover and land use in the catchment area. They often prove highly useful in
hydrological studies and analysis of sediment transport in the river.
GEOLOGICAL MAPPING
If outcropping permits, a geological map may be drafted at a scale selected according to the
desired precision, the stage of study and the size of the site. The map should indicate any useful
information on structure (dip, fold, faults and cracks, veins, etc.), hydrogeology (springs, losses),
and geomorphology (in particular old or recent landslides, indication of karstic formations, etc.).
TRIAL PITS
Trial pits can be dug out with a mechanical shovel for site investigations at the dam site, in
borrow areas for an earth fill dam, and possibly for evaluation of reservoir water tightness. This
is essentially done for earth fill dams but may also be used in site investigations for concrete
dams when the rock substratum is not very deep in order to assess the extent of the stripping that
will be required.
GEOPHYSICAL STUDIES
In some cases, (rock foundations, consideration of a rigid type dam), techniques of seismic
refraction (which are relatively quick and easy to perform) can be used to zone seismic wave
velocities. They can generally be related to the degree of cracking and weathering in the rock,
which sometimes makes it possible to locate accidents (faults or other) thanks to the velocity
anomalies they generate.
CORE SAMPLING
Core sampling is intended to give sufficient knowledge of the lithological make-up and structure
of the various foundations layers, to be able to draw the analytical geological cross-sections that
are necessary for a good understanding of the dam's foundation conditions. This technique makes
it possible to extend the investigations into every type of terrain, at greater depth than is possible
with pits, and to undertake more reliable water testing than can be done in pits (although
restricted to fewer points), and also, under certain conditions, to take undisturbed samples of the
ground.
GEOTECHNICAL LABORATORY TESTS
Knowledge of the physical characteristics and mechanical and hydraulic behavior of the
materials in the dam foundation, and of any materials whose use is envisaged in dam
construction, is necessary for the design engineer to design the best, most suitable dam possible
for the geotechnical context. That knowledge is in part acquired through geotechnical tests in a
laboratory. Such tests require the use of standardized procedures and specific equipment. They
include:
i. Identification tests: natural water content, grain size (sieve and sedimentation analysis),
Atterberg limits, methyl blue tests, particle unit weight, apparent bulk unit weight, etc.;
ii. compaction tests on materials from borrow areas: Standard Proctor test;
iii. mechanical and hydraulic tests: compressive strength, shear strength (using a triaxle
device), oedometer compressibility, permeability using an oedometer or permeameter.
SITE TESTS AND MEASUREMENTS
Several types of tests and measurements can be done in situ at various stages of study on a dam
site according to a variety of criteria (nature of the foundation, geotechnical problems, dam size,
etc.). These include static or dynamic penetrometer tests, pressure meter tests, shear vane
apparatus, phicometer, etc.

QUESTION 2

ENVIROMENTAL EFFECTS OF DAM ENGINEERING

a) COSTRUCTION PHASE
Natural landscape and heritage might be submerged, destroyed or disturbed by the dam and
reservoir project, meanwhile, the reservoir might add the new landscape. Submergence cause
loss of forest and agricultural land. In order to minimize the adverse effects of submergence it
becomes necessary to reduce the dam height up to a minimum possible value.
b) OPERAATION PHASE
The environmental consequences of large dams are numerous and varied, and includes direct
impacts to the biological, chemical and physical properties of rivers and riparian (or "stream-
side") environments.
The dam wall itself blocks fish migrations, which in some cases and with some species
completely separate spawning habitats from rearing habitats. The dam also traps sediments,
which are critical for maintaining physical processes and habitats downstream of the dam
(include the maintenance of productive deltas, barrier islands, fertile floodplains and coastal
wetlands).
Another significant and obvious impact is the transformation upstream of the dam from a free-
flowing river ecosystem to an artificial slack-water reservoir habitat. Changes in temperature,
chemical composition, dissolved oxygen levels and the physical properties of a reservoir are
often not suitable to the aquatic plants and animals that evolved with a given river system.
Indeed, reservoirs often host non-native and invasive species (e.g. snails, algae, predatory fish)
that further undermine the river's natural communities of plants and animals.
The alteration of a river's flow and sediment transport downstream of a dam often causes the
greatest sustained environmental impacts. Life in and around a river evolves and is conditioned
on the timing and quantities of river flow. Disrupted and altered water flows can be as severe as
completely de-watering river reaches and the life they contain. Yet even subtle changes in the
quantity and timing of water flows impact aquatic and riparian life, which can unravel the
ecological web of a river system.
A dam also holds back sediments that would naturally replenish downstream ecosystems. When
a river is deprived of its sediment load, it seeks to recapture it by eroding the downstream river
bed and banks (which can undermine bridges and other riverbank structures, as well as riverside
woodlands). Riverbeds downstream of dams are typically eroded by several meters within the
decade of first closing a dam; the damage can extend for tens or even hundreds of kilometres
below a dam.
Riverbed deepening (or "incising") will also lower groundwater tables along a river, lowering the
water table accessible to plant roots (and to human communities drawing water from wells).
Altering the riverbed also reduces habitat for fish that spawn in river bottoms, and for
invertebrates.
In aggregate, dammed rivers have also impacted processes in the broader biosphere. Most
reservoirs, especially those in the tropics, are significant contributors to greenhouse gas
emissions (a recent study pegged global greenhouse gas emissions from reservoirs on par with
that of the aviation industry, about 4% of human-caused GHG emissions). Recent studies on the
Congo River have demonstrated that the sediment and nutrient flow from the Congo drives
biological processes far into the Atlantic Ocean, including serving as a carbon sink for
atmospheric greenhouse gases.
Large dams have led to the extinction of many fish and other aquatic species, the disappearance
of birds in floodplains, huge losses of forest, wetland and farmland, erosion of coastal deltas, and
many other immitigable impacts.
Nasa geophysicist Dr. Benjamin Fong Chao found evidence that large dams cause changes to the
earth's rotation, because of the shift of water weight from oceans to reservoirs. He further
emphasized that, because of the number of dams which have been built, the earth's daily rotation
has apparently sped up by eight-millionths of a second since the 1950s. Chao said it is the first
time human activity has been shown to have a measurable effect on the Earth's motion.

MITIGATORY MEASURES TO REDUCE ENVIROMENTAL EFFECTS

1. Don't build them in the tropics.
 Dams near the equator give off much more CO2 due to anaerobic decay of vegetation than dams
further north. Though unavoidable it times dams she be minimized in the tropical regions
2. Fish cannons and other technical innovations.
Fish ladders and the like were marginally successful. Most major dams with actual fish upstream
have massive and expensive fish stocking programs. There is better technology, including one
that fish swim into voluntarily and get shot up higher, basically mimicking but increasing their
normal jumping.
3. Make them passive hydro storage instead of base load.
At present, wind and solar are the leading forms of new generation on several grids worldwide.
They are variable although highly predictable forms of generation. Hydro is well positioned to
provide additional capacity when needed as opposed to at all times. Among other things, this
preserves the water resource better. In many jurisdictions, hydro is also contra-cyclical to wind
energy, providing natural buffering.
4. Monitor carefully for mercury build-up.
James Bay had that problem as have others. This led to increased mercury in fish and hence in
local diets, which was very damaging and very difficult to fix. Nipping the problem in the bud
early is important.
5. Ensure sufficient water continues to flow downstream.
Dams fundamentally change the nature of the river downstream from them, especially as water is
often kept in the reservoir for reasons such as recreation, maintaining the head and irrigation,
rather than allowing more to flow downstream. Sub optimizing the dam to permit more constant
water flow downstream would be advantageous, but is a difficult nut to crack.
6. Flush silt out of the base of the dam downstream constantly.
One thing dams do is trap sediment which is full of nutrients. This starves large volumes
downstream which depend on that sediment for nutrients and richer soil on the banks. Building
constant small-scale dredging into the dam's operations and flushing the silt downstream would
reduce this impact. Dam busting operations in the USA to eliminate defunct dams release a
torrent of mud, but a constant trickle would be better.
7. Use aeration technology to reduce anaerobic stagnation in reservoirs.
Most dams suffer from becoming dead bodies of water without intervention. Many, e.g. Salmon
Arm in BC, dump what is effectively fertilizer in the water to combat this. A different method is
to use what are effectively very large fish tank bubblers to constantly aerate the deeper waters of
the reservoir. This increases the health of the artificial lake, the quality of the water in the
reservoir and the quality of the water which is sent downstream