The Ultimate Dam Revisited

Professor Paul A Back, formerly of Sir Alexander Gibb & Partners, gave the first Binnie Lecture at the 1990 BDS Conference held in Nottingham (Back, 1990). The lecture was entitled “The Ultimate Dam” where he suggested ten desirable criteria for the ultimate dam.

The aim of this paper is to reflect on Back’s ultimate dam criteria, 28 years on, and discuss its relevance in today’s dam society. The criteria were originally intended by Back for the construction of a new dam but in the UK there are limited opportunities to apply the criteria to new dams. However it has basis for what should be aspired to by dam owners and undertakers for improving the safety of our existing structures as the custodians of our forever ageing portfolio of assets. The following sections discuss each of the criteria for the Ultimate Dam and how this is being applied.