The latest news on Dam Safety Intelligence, and the dam safety industry in NZ and around the world.

Sector Changes hold Water

Dams fulfil an increasingly vital role in the wellbeing of all New Zealanders, serving water supply, renewable energy production, flood mitigation, recreation, irrigation and process industries. Our world-renowned dams industry and community is in an exciting growth phase, responding to water demand, decarbonisation, climate conditions and natural hazards, society’s safety, environmental and cultural expectations, and regulatory change.

This article first appeared in the December 2022 edition of Engineering New Zealand’s EG magazine.

Using Maturity Matrices to Evaluate a Dam Safety Programme and Improve Practices

Identifying and continually improving the key elements of an effective dam safety program and associated practices can be challenging, but is essential to support resilient dams and resilient communities; using the Dam Safety Maturity Matrices (DSMM) is an efficient and thorough way to do this

The Politics of Dam Safety Legislation

Dam safety legislation has been a “hot potato” in New Zealand for decades, under various governments. So what is it, and why is it so controversial?

The Modern Dam Engineer

Like many industries, the dam industry is influenced by both internal and external factors which can prompt change. IWP&DC was interested in finding out if such elements have affected the engineer’s working life when inspecting dams. We asked members of the industry for their own thoughts about the role of the modern dam engineer: Has this changed in recent years? Are engineers faced with increased challenges? And will this role continue to evolve?

Dam and Foundation Responses to the Kaikōura Earthquake

The 7.8 magnitude Kaikōura earthquake on 14 November 2016 ruptured over 20 faults during the initial shaking, which lasted nearly two minutes. Instrumentation installed at many dams has shown that while most dams suffered no physical damage, many have shown a piezometric response to ground motions. This paper presents a summary of measured piezometric dam responses in a number or locations across New Zealand following the Kaikōura earthquake, and discusses factors that influence ground motions and a dam’s response to given ground motions.