Gallimaufry: News and events from the British Dam Society

There were some excellent submissions in the BDS prize – the technical paper competition for the under-35s. The four finalists presented their papers at a BDS meeting at the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) in London on 21 November. The four were

• Natalie Evans (Mott MacDonald) on safety modifications at Lower Laithe reservoir

• Rhiannon Morris (MWH) on upgrading of the bottom outlet facilities at Abberton reservoir

• Anneke Kellond Hallsworth (Mott MacDonald) on surveys and temporary works carried out to construct a reinforced concrete lined spillway at Windleden reservoir

• Junaid Patel (United Utilities) on application of Eurotop wave overtopping guidance on three reservoirs in the North West.

All gave confident presentations and answered well the awkward questions thrown at them from the floor of the meeting. Congratulations go to Natalie as the winner; Junaid secured the runner-up place with Anneke and Rhiannon taking third and fourth place respectively. Natalie takes home £800 in prize money, while second and third place take home £400 and £200, respectively. The papers by the four finalists will be published in Dams and Reservoirs over this and the next edition.

The Flood and Water Management Bill became an act at the end of the last parliament in April 2010. The legislation applies to England and Wales but similar legislation will be introduced in Scotland. The need to implement the Act has been accepted by the current administration. A provisional timetable for implementation is beginning to emerge, although dates at this stage are provisional (and aspirational). It seems implementation is likely to be in two phases. The first phase would apply the new Act to large raised reservoirs already covered by the Reservoirs Act 1975. This phase would be essentially reducing the regulatory burden for reservoirs not deemed high risk, with October 2012 as a target date for implementation. The second phase would apply the legislation to reservoirs with a lower volume threshold (provisionally 10 000 m³), and could be considered to be increased regulation (and hence more difficult to implement), with 2014 as a target date for implementation.

A key aspect of the legislation is the classification of some large raised reservoirs as ‘high risk’. ‘High risk’ reservoirs will be those reservoirs where human life would be endangered if there was an uncontrolled release of water from the reservoir. Owners of ‘high risk’ reservoirs will need to comply with all the requirements of the Act. Owners of reservoirs that are not designated as ‘high risk’ will still need to register the reservoir, but will not need to comply with the inspection and supervision requirements of the Act.

The Environment Agency is currently carrying out public consultation to decide how to classify reservoirs as high risk and who should carry out the classification. This is an opportunity for us working in the profession to put our points of view forward on an issue that could affect how we go about our work and how we ensure that the high standards of dam safety we currently have are maintained. Consultation is online at https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/flood/reservoir/risk and is open until 23 February. Further consultation is also likely in 2012 on how the Act will be implemented.

Note that views and advice from the profession are also being provided to government by the Reservoir Safety Consultative Group (RSCG). The RSCG was set up in 2008 as an ICE committee of reservoir professionals representing owners, panel engineers, Defra, the Environment Agency and ICE. It reviewed the draft Floods and Water Management Bill and has now been reconvened to continue with

• participation in the consultation process on behalf of ICE

• review of the statutory instruments that will underpin the implementation of the legislation

• review of an updated Reservoirs Act Guide.

A reminder that the 17th biennial BDS conference is in Leeds in 2012. The date for your diary is 12–15 September. See the BDS website for more details.

An interesting time-lapse video of the removal of a 38 m high concrete dam in the USA using explosives can be found on the National Geographic website (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/10/111028-condit-dam-removal-video/). The 98-year-old Condit dam was a 14 MW hydropower scheme but the owners, PacifiCorp, chose to remove the dam at a cost of $32 million rather than construct fish passage (at a cost of $100 million) required under a new federal dam license.

The International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) published three bulletins in 2010/2011

• Bulletin 135 – geomembrane sealings systems for dams

• Bulletin 141 – concrete face rockfill dams – concepts for design and construction

• Bulletin 144 – cost savings in dams.

The bulletins remain authoritative guidance for dam practitioners worldwide and represent the combined wisdom of ICOLD technical committees, most with UK representation. Bulletins published over the last 10 years are listed below. Bulletins can be obtained from the ICOLD website (http://www.icold-cigb.net/GB/Publications/bulletin.asp).

Are you reading this journal and not a member of BDS? Have you thought about becoming a member but never got round to it? BDS membership stands at over 500 with a further 24 corporate members, but we are always keen to welcome new members. The society is open to anyone wanting to learn and share experience or knowledge on all aspects of dams and reservoirs. Benefits include reduced rates for some BDS events; free access to all papers and articles published by Dams and Reservoirs as well as free access to the proceedings of the BDS conferences. Just as importantly, it is a great way to meet others in the profession, to share experiences, understand how the industry is changing in terms of technical innovation, new products, management of risk and reservoir safety legislation. Involvement in the society can provide a valuable part of your continuing professional development, help in your career development and in appointment to the Reservoirs Act panels.

Membership fees for 2012 remain at

• standard membership, £35

• retired membership, £16

• members under 35 years of age, £15

• student membership, £5

• corporate membership, £375.

If you are interested in becoming a member then fill in and return the form overleaf with your subscription.