Siesmic analysis |
Key prerequisite for sustainable dams
Martin Wieland, Chairman of the ICOLD Committee on Seismic Aspects of Dam, and Vice Chairman Trevor Matuschka, explain why the earthquake safety of dams is a key prerequisite for sustainable dams
Right – Figure 1: Transverse cracks in Chaungmagyi earth dam due to differential settlement of the dam crest of up to 1.7m caused by the magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar on 28.3.2025 (Photo courtesy Myanmar National Committee on Large Dams)
Below – Figure 2: Longitudinal crack on the crest of the 131m high Lower Paunglaung earth core rockfill dam caused by the magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar on 28.3.2025 (Photo courtesy Myanmar National Committee on Large Dams)
ON 28 MARCH 2025, an earthquake with a moment magnitude Mw of 7.7 occurred near Mandalay in Myanmar along the well-known North-South stretching Sagaing fault, which has the capability of producing even stronger earthquakes. The damage caused by the earthquake was huge, although reports are still incomplete.
Some embankment dams – most reservoirs are used for irrigation and water supply – located along the Sagaing fault experienced significant deformations, though none of them failed. The satisfactory behaviour of the dams was also due to the low water level in the reservoirs during the dry season. In Figure 1 transverse cracks near the right abutment of the Chaungmagyi dam, an earth dam located very close to Naypyidaw, the capital of Myanmar, are shown, which were caused due to differential settlements of the dam. The maximum settlement was ca. 1.7m and the downstream movement of the crest was of the order of 0.6 to 0.9m. Figure 2 shows a typical longitudinal crack in the 131m high Lower Paunglaung earth core rockfill dam, which is also located in the vicinity of Naypyidaw. The maximum crack width is about 12cm and the crack can be observed over a length of ca. 800m. Another magnitude 6.2 earthquake occurred on 23 April 2025, in the Marmara Sea close to Istanbul. None of the dams within a radius of 100km from the epicentre, which were inspected immediately after the earthquake, suffered any damage. This behaviour is expected for well-designed, well-constructed and well-maintained dams. However, only two dams were located within an epicentral distance of 50km and the closest dam was 30km away from the epicentre,
22 | June 2025 |
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