Estimation of reservoir sedimentation using bathymetry survey at Shumburit earth dam, East Gojjam zone Amhara region, Ethiopia

Abstract

Sediment accumulation is a major factor in reducing the useful life of irrigation reservoirs. As a result, information on any changes in storage capacity is required to reduce the reservoir's risk. Therefore, the goal of this research was to identify the amount of sediment accumulated in the reservoir using a bathymetric survey. The bathymetric survey method involves subtracting the two-period capacities (before dam construction and after dam construction). The bathymetric survey of the reservoir was carried out by analyzing volume and surface area using ArcGIS 10.8, and developing the Triangulated Irregular Network (TIN) surface from topo-sheet data. The bathymetric survey showed that 297,000 m3 (362,340 tons) of sediment had accumulated in the reservoir over six years of operation. This means the reservoir's total capacity has been reduced by 7.52% over the last six years. The average rate of sedimentation was assessed to be 49,500 m3/y (60,390 tons/year) and the annual capacity reduction of the reservoir was 1.25 percent. The proportion of dead storage capacity to sediment deposition level was used to calculate the reservoir's useful life. Hence; the sedimentation rates of the dead storage and live storage regions were 31,666.67 m3/year and 48,333.33 m3/year, respectively. Finally, this indicates that the reservoir will not be functional for more than 15 years if the sediment deposition rate remains the same as the previous six years throughout the operation periods.