Ensuring the Safety of Aging Dams: Challenges, Solutions, and Modern Monitoring Technologies

Dams play a crucial role in providing irrigation, flood control, hydroelectric power, and urban water supply. However, many dams worldwide are aging, with some exceeding their intended lifespan, increasing the risks of structural failure. This is compounded by climate change, inadequate maintenance, and limited monitoring capabilities.

Today, over 10,000 large dams globally are estimated to be more than 50 years old, presenting significant safety hazards to both human populations and ecosystems. With increasing extreme weather events and altered hydrological patterns, the risks associated with aging dams are only intensifying.

Structural Integrity Issues in Aging Dams

Aging dams face various structural integrity issues due to the natural degradation of materials over time. Some of the most common challenges include:

Concrete Fatigue and Deterioration
Concrete, a primary material used in dam construction, degrades due to environmental factors. Aging dams are prone to concrete cracking, spalling, and chemical reactions like alkali-silica reaction (ASR), which leads to expansive cracking. Decades of water pressure, thermal expansion, and contraction further accelerate this degradation.

Steel Corrosion and Fatigue
Reinforcing steel (rebar) embedded in concrete is vulnerable to corrosion when exposed to moisture or chemicals. The cyclical wet-dry conditions common in dam environments create an ideal setting for corrosion, causing cracks in surrounding concrete and compromising structural integrity. Unchecked, this can lead to catastrophic failures.

Seepage and Internal Erosion
Seepage through the dam body or foundation, if uncontrolled, can lead to internal erosion or piping. This gradual removal of soil particles weakens the dam's structure and can result in instability or even failure. Engineers use piezometers to monitor pore water pressure and manage seepage risks effectively.

Case Study: Oroville Dam Crisis
The 2017 Oroville Dam crisis in California illustrates the dangers of neglecting aging infrastructure. Poor maintenance of the emergency spillway led to severe erosion, prompting the evacuation of over 180,000 people. This incident underscores the critical need for regular maintenance and modern monitoring systems for dam safety.

Hydrological and Environmental Concerns

Aging dams present not only structural risks but also hydrological and environmental challenges that exacerbate safety risks.

Sedimentation Accumulation
Over time, sediment accumulates in a dam's reservoir, reducing its capacity to store water and manage floods. This sediment build-up can also hinder hydroelectric power generation by blocking spillways and intake structures, increasing the risk of overtopping during extreme rainfall. Effective sediment management, such as dredging or bypass systems, is essential to maintain a dam's operational lifespan.

Water Quality and Ecosystem Impacts
Sediment-rich water affects downstream water quality, harming aquatic habitats and reducing fish populations. Poorly maintained dams also disrupt natural river flow, impacting ecosystems reliant on regular flooding cycles to replenish nutrients in floodplains.

Safety Risks: Flooding and Catastrophic Failures

Failure to properly monitor and maintain aging dams can lead to catastrophic flooding and property destruction. Several factors contribute to increased failure risk:

Extreme Weather Events and Climate Change
Climate change has increased the frequency of extreme weather events, such as intense rainfall and flooding, placing added stress on dams. Many older dams are not equipped to handle these modern hydrological extremes, increasing the risk of overtopping and structural failure.

Piping and Internal Erosion
Piping is a leading cause of dam failure, occurring when water finds pathways through or under the dam, eroding its internal materials. Once a critical volume of material is lost, the dam can fail suddenly, causing downstream flooding.

Case Study: Edenville and Sanford Dam Failures
In 2020, the Edenville and Sanford dams in Michigan failed following heavy rainfall. This led to widespread flooding, property damage, and displacement of thousands of residents. These incidents highlight the urgent need for improved monitoring and maintenance of aging dam infrastructure.

Regulatory and Maintenance Gaps

Many countries, particularly those with limited resources, face challenges in inspecting and maintaining aging dams.

Inadequate Inspection Protocols
Many older dams were constructed before modern safety regulations and therefore follow outdated inspection protocols. Regular inspections and updated monitoring technologies are crucial to identify and address structural weaknesses. In the United States alone, over 15,000 dams are classified as high-hazard potential, but many are not regularly inspected due to budget constraints.

Lack of Maintenance Funding
A significant barrier to dam safety is the lack of funding for maintenance. Without sufficient resources, many dam operators struggle to conduct necessary repairs, dredge sediment, or install modern monitoring systems. This lack of maintenance makes aging dams increasingly vulnerable to failure.

Modern Technologies for Monitoring and Rehabilitating Aging Dams

To mitigate the risks associated with aging dams, engineers are turning to advanced monitoring technologies for real-time performance data and early detection of potential failures.

Geotechnical Monitoring Instruments
Geotechnical instrumentation, such as piezometers, inclinometers, and extensometers, plays a vital role in monitoring parameters like pore water pressure, deformation, and seepage. These instruments help detect changes within the dam's structure, enabling timely intervention.

Remote Sensing Techniques
Remote sensing technologies like InSAR (Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar) and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) are used to monitor dam deformation and ground movement. These techniques detect subtle structural shifts, providing early warnings of potential failures.

Case Study: InSAR Monitoring in Italy
In Italy, InSAR technology has been effectively employed to monitor dam deformation in seismic-prone areas. High-resolution radar imagery captures millimeter-scale movements, allowing engineers to address issues before they become critical.

Automated Data Loggers and Early Warning Systems
Automated data loggers connected to early warning systems offer continuous dam monitoring. These systems collect data on water levels, pressure, and other critical parameters, which are analyzed in real time to detect anomalies. When thresholds are exceeded, automated alarms notify dam operators and local authorities of potential risks.

Encardio Rite's Role in Aging Dam Safety and Monitoring

Encardio Rite's Infinitus system provides a comprehensive solution to address the challenges of aging dam infrastructure. The system integrates various monitoring technologies, predictive intelligence, and seamless data integration for a robust, continuous monitoring platform tailored to dam safety.

Proqio Platform
Proqio, Encardio Rite's platform, enables real-time data acquisition, risk assessment, and early warning systems by integrating sensor data, remote sensing data (e.g., InSAR and LiDAR), and environmental inputs. This allows dam operators to view the dam's condition comprehensively and identify potential failures early.

By analyzing historical data alongside real-time data streams, Proqio helps predict maintenance needs before structural integrity is compromised. Automated alarms and early warning alerts also enable dam operators to respond swiftly to any anomalies.

Comprehensive Asset Safety with Infinitus
Infinitus offers continuous monitoring, dynamic data visualization, and AI-powered risk assessments, ensuring dam operators have the tools necessary to maintain dam safety over time. This proactive, holistic approach helps minimize the risk of catastrophic dam failures.

Click here to Read related blogs: https://www.encardio.com/blog/problems-of-aging-dams

A-7, Industrial Estate, Talkatora Road Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh - 226011, India

Encardio Rite has set the standard in the Geotechnical and Infrastructure Health Monitoring industry for over five decades, supporting over a thousand global projects. From bridges and tunnels to dams and mines and from high-speed rail to construction sites, our Metasensing philosophy has been instrumental in bringing safety to megastructures worldwide.

Our promise to you does not stop at sensing-Meta, in Greek, means 'beyond.' We go beyond to provide you with data, expertise, and technology, ensuring unparalleled structural safety while keeping you in complete control, no matter where you are.

Here's why you should Metasense with Encardio:
🔹 Comprehensive On-Site Services: From installation to project setup, we're there from start to finish.
🔹 In-House Manufacturing: Our Electron Beam Welded Geotechnical Sensors and GSM/ RF LORA dataloggers are reliable and plug-and-play.
🔹 Partner Technologies: We bring you the latest in fiber optics, INSAR, surveying and GNSS through our trusted partnerships.
🔹 On-Site Assurance: We're on the ground, ensuring your projects stay safe and sound.
🔹 Infrastructure Data Intelligence Platform: Keep tabs on everything, anytime, anywhere. Make data-driven decisions with ease.

What has brought us here is:
🔹 We are a solution provider with manufacturing capabilities.
🔹 We focus on Customer Win.
🔹 We have Global Onground Engineers.
🔹 We go the extra mile for you!

Our unwavering commitment to excellence has earned us the trust of our clients on some of the most challenging projects worldwide for over 56 years. We have monitored over 1,000 km of tunnelling, more than 250 dams, and iconic structures such as Burj Khalifa, Marina Bay Sands, and One Zaabeel Tower, among others.

Come experience the future of Metasensing for your Megastructure with Encardio Rite.

This release was published on openPR.