This autumn edition of Dams and Reservoirs contains write-ups of the annual meeting of the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD), which this year was in Lucerne. In particular, we find out how BDS members are contributing to the international ICOLD technical committees that develop the ICOLD bulletins. Also in this edition, David Brown and Paul Howlett look at the challenges faced by British Waterways in managing and bringing up to modern standards its stock of reservoirs which have an average age of 189 years.
Internal erosion is a hot topic at the moment, rightly so, as it is one of the most serious risks to the long-term safety of embankment dams. Paul Tedd, Ian Carter, Ken Watts and Andrew Charles give very interesting insights into how the risk of hydraulic fracture at Greenbooth dam, a puddle clay dam, was investigated.
BDS targets young people and students
As part of its charitable work the BDS is keen to advance the education of the public in matters relating to dams and reservoirs. One of the ways this is achieved is by providing resources that are specifically aimed at young people and students.
The BDS website is key to what is on offer. Within the ‘Student zone’ there are sections on teaching resources for schools, university liaison, student competitions and careers in dams as well as an excellent technical overview of dams and reservoirs.
Over the past year the BDS has made a significant investment in a suite of five, free downloadable geography lessons for the 11–16-year-old age group. These have been developed by Philip Laws and Malcolm Corlett from the BDS committee in association with EdComs, an education consultancy company. The aim is to help students understand the key geographical themes around the planning, design and construction of a new dam and reservoir in a simulated location. There are five curriculum-linked lesson plans, student material and presentations to help the teachers motivate the students to learn about the topic.
To market this new resource a flyer has been e-mailed to over 5000 secondary heads of geography in the UK and so far the response has been very good. In addition BDS members are being encouraged to make contact with local schools to help them deliver this resource.
Also aimed at the younger age group is a new trump card game featuring dams from most European countries. This was published by the German Committee on Large Dams and while stocks last copies are available free from the ‘Student zone’ on the BDS website.
Matthew Hill leads the work to engage with students at universities. Talks have been offered on dam-related subjects to undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Posters have also been sent to many universities making students aware of the BDS and inviting them to join for a reduced membership fee of just £5 per annum.
The BDS also runs a number of student competitions to encourage awareness of dams and reservoirs. These are organised by Anthea Peters and one such competition is aimed at students in full-time education at universities or students on a year in industry (YINI) placement. See below for how to enter this year’s student competition.
Students are also encouraged to enter the BDS photographic competition that has generous cash prizes for the winning entries.
The secretary will always be pleased to receive new ideas on how to help make young people and students more aware of dams and reservoirs (contact Tim Fuller at tim.fuller@ice.org.uk).
Competitions
The deadline for submission of entries to the 2011 BDS student competition is fast approaching. Students should send the following to Tim Fuller, the secretary of BDS, by e-mail (tim.fuller@ice.org.uk) by 30 November 2011
an essay of up to 1000 words on the topic ‘The benefits of dams’
a one-page application outlining what you would gain from the experience of attending the BDS 2012 conference, why you wish to take part and why you should be selected.
First prize will be an expenses-paid trip to the 2012 BDS conference in Leeds. Second and third prizes will be £200 and £100 respectively. The competition is open to students in full-time education and YINI students.
Events
The deadline for submission of synopses for the 2012 BDS conference is also approaching. The 2012 BDS conference will be held at the University of Leeds, between Wednesday 12 September and Saturday 15 September 2012. Synopses should be submitted by 14 November 2011.
The main theme of the conference will be on the social and environmental benefits and impacts of dams and reservoirs in the UK and abroad, with a focus towards: the uses and benefits of water; planning and environmental legislation; and the consequences of failure, discontinuance, abandonment and scour testing.
Papers are invited under the following themes:
environmental and social impacts of reservoirs
lessons learnt from incidents and accidents to dams
emergency planning
risk assessment techniques in practice
new construction techniques and materials in dam engineering
the effects of climate change and recent flood events
rehabilitation case histories
small reservoirs in the context of new legislation
instrumentation and surveillance
worldwide trends in legislation.
Authors wishing to prepare papers or short technical notes are invited to submit their synopses of not more than 250 words to Andrew Pepper, the BDS honorary technical secretary, by e-mail (atpec@peppernet.org). Information should include the provisional title of the paper, author’s name, address, telephone and e-mail address.
Dams in the news
The Japan Commission on Large Dams (JCOLD) has prepared a report on the impact of the Tohoku earthquake on Japanese dams at http://www.jcold.or.jp/e/activity/index.html.
It makes an interesting read and is perhaps a reminder that it is time that we re-look at seismic risk in the UK. This is a theme also taken up in the feedback from Ljiljana Spasic-Gril on his involvement on the ICOLD seismic committee – see the article in this edition on the annual meeting of ICOLD in Lucerne.
