... Emerald Publishing Limited Licensed re-use rights only barrages & reservoirs dams environment landscape reservoirs Many of us in the dams and reservoirs community will have heard the sentiment expressed by the public when viewing a reservoir: ‘It looks like it has always been...

... on increasing the discharge capacity of the overflow as identified through flood study results to meet wave freeboard requirements, or on implementing additional changes to increase the reservoir storage capacity, in compliance with current UK dam safety requirements. Using four different case studies...

...Quentin Shaw In this article, the author shares his experience of over 40 years in the design and construction of large dams in over 40 countries around the world, focusing on the understanding of what makes a project successful and, more importantly, why success has proved elusive on many projects...

...J. Andrew Charles Failures and serious incidents at dams often lead to demands for improved public safety measures to reduce the hazards posed by the storage of large volumes of water. However, relatively little attention has been given to the issue of liability for the damage resulting from...

...Niall Allen; Samuel Tudor The ICOLD 2025 pre-study tour offered a rare opportunity to observe firsthand the engineering achievements along the Yangtze River, one of the most hydrologically significant river systems in the world. The tour included site visits to the Three Gorges Dam, Gezhouba Dam...

... supplies for example, is not considered. Warning time is also not taken into consideration as part of the designation process. Although there is often a time period between the first identification of a potential dam failure and the failure of a dam, for example in the event of a significant leak or during...

...Denis Krutov For new dams on rock foundations, it may be feasible to review sliding safety under a very stringent rules approach. However, the task of identifying the most stringent standard is not always straightforward, as different approaches are seen to apply different criteria, with different...

... of critical geotechnical structures such as embankments, slopes, and dams. Their behaviour is complex, influenced by stress history, depositional environment, and over-consolidation ratio ( OCR ). Conventional analysis methods typically assume homogeneity and uniform stress conditions, which do not represent...

...Aidan Norris This briefing note summarises two bulletins currently being produced by the ICOLD (International Commission on Large Dams) Technical Committee C ‘Chutes, Stilling Basins, Upgrading and Surveillance of Spillway’, which met on 17 May 2025 in Chengdu, China. This note outlines...

... Research Establishment (BRE) started the development of a national dams database in 1988 as part of the Government’s Reservoir Safety Research Programme (Charles, et al., 2011). This was followed by the creation of the post-incident report (PIR) system that began on 01 January 2007, which...

...Giovani Jordi Bruschi; Vinicius Paiva Guedes; Rafaela de Carvalho Saar; Monica Pessoa Neves Risk evaluation of embankment dams is typically based on slope stability analyses considering rising piezometric levels and their impact on safety factors. However, these methods often overlook internal...

... survive, used for both their original and new purposes. Corresponding author David Henthorn Brown (David.Brown@canalrivertrust.org.uk) © 2025 Emerald Publishing Limited: All rights reserved 2025 Emerald Publishing Limited Licensed re-use rights only barrages & reservoirs dams...

...Alan John Brown, MA, MSc, DIC, CEng, FICE, MCIWEM, FGS Current practice in risk analysis and assessment of dams in the UK, including historical development and current practice, is summarised. This includes comments on current features and areas for improvement in estimation of both consequences...

...J. Andrew Charles, PhD, DSc(Eng), FREng, FICE; Paul Tedd, PhD, DSc(Eng) Although there has been no loss of life through British dam failures since the 1930 Reservoirs (Safety Provisions) Act was enacted, there have been some major developments in reservoir safety regulation and legislation since...

...Andrew Courtnadge, MEng MICE This briefing note summarises the background and progress of ICOLD (International Commission on Large Dams) Technical Committee H, whose current terms of reference include producing new guidance on risk assessment in dam safety management, guidance on dam safety...

... to the role. There are proposals to further amend the role. It seems important to have a clear understanding of the original role to be able to assess the implications of any proposed changes or additions to the role. barrages & reservoirs dams safety The Supervising Engineer role is a key...

... of safety, precautions to be observed in the construction, alteration, and use of reservoirs, and to amend the law with respect to liability for damage and injury caused by the escape of water from reservoirs’. Emerald Publishing Limited: All rights reserved 2024 barrages and reservoirs dams...

...J. Andrew Charles, PhD, DSc(Eng), FREng, FICE; Paul Tedd, PhD, DSc(Eng) One hundred years ago in 1925, there were two dam failures with significant loss of life, and following these disasters, the 1930 Reservoirs (Safety Provisions) Act was enacted. Catastrophic failures in the nineteenth century...

...Prithula Roy Choudhury, MEng, MICE This project involved undertaking a stability analysis of an unreinforced concrete gravity dam. The stability assessment considered the 1 in 10 000 year and probable maximum flood events as well as the effects of ice and seismic loading, concluding that the above...

...Davut Yilmaz; Tugce Basar; Arzu Ozkaya In dam engineering, plunge pools are critical terminal structures, often causing substantial scour that poses risks at the foot of the dam. Scouring near dams is a nationwide concern, as it has led to more dam failures than any other cause. Thus, evaluating...