AUSES OF DAM FAILURE AND MITIGATION METHODS (Case study of Mylomy Embankment Dain)

Abstract

The worst history of dams is not their large investment. Rather, it is the accident due to these clams. The engineer should give great attention, not only about the advantage after constructing these structures, but also, he should think about how to build a stable structure, so that the accident, that could happen due to the failure of these dams could be avoided. On the other way. even though, the given dam does not cause any accident, but, if it does not serve as it is designed, it is economical loss for the country. Even though the requirement is to have a stable and functional structure, but by now most dams built in Ethiopia arc failed before their design life . Mylomy dam is found in Amhara region, Waghirnra zone, Sekota wercda. The main causes of clam failure in the region are seepage and hydrological problems. The objective of this study is to identify the causes for the failure of Mylomy dam and to recommend some mitigation measures. The slopes of Mylomy dam are stable for all the three critical conditions. But there i s no water in the r eservoir. Also the reservoir area is filled by sediment. The cause for the h ydrological failure i s inappropriate data transformation from Sirinka and Michew stations. The reservoir area i s highly susceptible to seepage problem. If the soil layer is compacted or blanket grouting is applied this problem can be reduced. lt is well known that, as the particle size of the fill material increases, the amount of seeping water through that material will also increase . This seeping water should be within the sa fe li mit in both a mount and velocity . Here in this thesis a simple laboratory work is done to correlate particle size or the fill mat erial and the amount of seeping water through that material