Implementing UK reservoir safety – thoughts on future needs

Abstract

The safety of the UK's large, raised reservoirs has been assured since 1930 by act of parliament together with associated technical guidance. There are now separate Reservoirs Acts in England, Scotland and Wales. Periodic adjustments are made to both legislation and technical guidance based on experience and to ensure both stay relevant. Further changes are anticipated in the coming years. The author draws on 50 years of reservoir safety experience in both the UK and overseas and including 26 years as an All-Reservoirs Panel Engineer under the UK Act, to explore aspects where future changes may prove beneficial. The paper contains the results of a survey of All-Reservoir Engineers on the efficacy of some potential measures. It discusses safety conflicts in current legal requirements, possible continuity issues with safety reviews in Scotland, the need to better define compliance requirements and the benefits of real-time monitoring. It concludes by reflecting on the nature of inspections and how more precise definitions of downstream consequence and reservoir complexity could help better target an increasingly scarce skill base.