Stone Dams Research Articles

Development of a smoothed particle hydrodynamics model for porous media flows with enhanced volume conservation and the revisit of the mass conservation equation

Porous media exist extensively in hydraulic and coastal engineering structures, while the modeling of wave/flow interaction with porous media remains challenging. This work develops a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) model for accurately simulating wave/flow interaction with porous media. The mass and momentum conservation equations incorporating the mixture theory are adopted. The resistant forces of the solid skeleton of porous media on fluid flows are described by the nonlinear empirical formula. The research contributions of the work lie in two aspects. First, two categories of mass conservation equations for porous media flow are revisited and analyzed to examine the influences of the local time derivative term of fluid volume fraction on simulation results. Second, the Volume Conservation Shifting scheme is, for the first time, introduced into SPH to enhance volume conservation for simulating porous media flows. The developed SPH model is validated by an analytical case of seepage flows in a U-tube with porous media and then applied to study four benchmark examples involving both saturated and unsaturated porous media, i.e., dam-break flow through a crushed stone dam, rapid seepage flow through a rockfill dam, solitary wave propagation over a porous seabed, and solitary wave propagation over a submerged porous breakwater. The morphological features and dynamic pressure heads of the porous media flows have been satisfactorily predicted, demonstrating the good accuracy and enhanced volume conservation of the developed SPH model.

Evaluación de las prácticas de conservación de suelo en la Subcuenca Presa Jalpan, Querétaro, México

This paper's main objective is to evaluate water erosion, and its effect on soil management and conservation practices in the subbasin Jalpan Dam, located at The Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve in the State of Queretaro in northern Mexico. This paper was elaborated in four stages: 1) Analysis of soil conservation practices at the study area, with information collected through semi-structured interviews and field verification; 2) Measurement of the effect in soil’s conservation practices on soil’s erodibility, by taking soil samples and in situ measurements on paired plots; 3) Estimation of water erosion and identification of priority areas for its management, by applying the USLE model of Wischmeier and Smith (1978) and the use of GIS (Geographic Information Systems); 4) Estimation of sediment contribution to the Jalpan dam, using the methodology of Aveldaño et al. (1994). As a result, 40 polygons with soil’s conservation practices were located within the Jalpan Dam sub-basin, distributed mainly in the high functional zone. 22 of the 40 polygons were visited, in which 6 types of practices were spotted: reforestations with pine-cedar, maguey lines, agricultural terraces, stone barriers, stone dams and brushwood check dams. The results show deterioration on the structures, more than 30% of them require maintenance and 20% are clogged. Vegetative practices have had little success, reflected in low plant densities and low survival. As a result of the conservation practices evaluations in soil’s erodibility, it was found that in 8 of the 9 sites evaluated, the practices decreased the susceptibility of the soil to erode. It is important to establish systematic supervising mechanisms to ensure proper evaluation of every soil conservation practice condition and function.

Multi-criteria optimization approach to the design of small dams’ systems along mountainous stream beds

Abstract This paper aims at the optimal design of a system of small solid barrier-type stone dams in a semi-realistic study case, determining the number, location and height of dams and a borrow-pit (BP)'s location for benefit maximization and cost minimization of objectives: (a) maximum flood protection, (b) maximum underlying aquifers' artificial recharge, (c) minimum dams' construction cost and (d) minimum stonework transportation cost. The simplified conceptual model involves no hydraulic simulation; flow characteristics are not considered, while no dam is assumed to affect another dam's benefit/cost values. Hence, all partial benefit/cost values can be separately pre-calculated, for each one of the available dam locations for all available heights and BP locations, deriving from data concerning topography, geology/soil, land uses, construction and transportation costs. Any solution proposing a system of dams of various heights and a BP exhibits a total management value equal to the sum of the respective partial benefit/cost values of each dam. The multi-objective optimization problem is formulated into a single-objective minimization problem; the difference of costs minus benefits is to be minimized. Simple, elitist genetic algorithms (GAs) are used, coupled with sophisticated post-processing of results, able to produce optimized design solutions and strategies.

Impact of Flash Floods On Agri-based Livelihoods In Sylhet Haor Basin

Bangladesh is most vulnerable to natural disasters and climate change. Over the past few decades, flash floods have frequently affected the livelihood of people in the Sylhet Haor Basin. This study highlights the causes of increased flash floods, their impact on farming practices and livelihoods, and possible solutions to flash flood risk in the Sylhet Haor Basin. Data were collected using a pre-tested structured questionnaire from randomly selected 298 Haor farmers in high and moderately vulnerable flash flood zones across the Haor region during November 2021 and April 2022. In moderately vulnerable areas, the lack of rivers and canal dredging was the main factor contributing to flash flood deterioration. Index scores and ranks revealed that flash floods most severely affect the primary production sector (agriculture) and threaten the lives and livelihoods of the local populace in high- and moderately flood-prone areas. After the severe flash flood, farmers were forced to turn to other occupations instead of agriculture for their livelihood. To reduce the impact of flash floods on particular features or entire wetlands, most farmers preferred the construction of embankments over sandbags, concrete or stone dams, submergible embankments, and rubber dams. For flash flood risk management, farmers in high- and moderately flash flood-vulnerable areas emphasize the construction of higher dams and embankments and the installation of more flood barriers (dams/embankments). The concerned flash flood management agencies could incorporate the key findings of this study while formulating risk mitigation strategies for the Sylhet Haor Basin. Ann. Bangladesh Agric. (2022) 26 (1) : 61-73

Post-flood analysis of the flood from the rupture of the stone dam in Rudno nad Hronom on May 17, 2021

Post-flood analysis of the flood from the rupture of the stone dam in Rudno nad Hronom on May 17, 2021

The vitality of fruit trees in ancient Bedouin orchards in the Arid Negev Highlands (Israel): Implications of climatic change and environmental stability

Thirty-seven sites with fruit tree orchards were found in the arid Negev Highlands of southern Israel. A variety of domesticated fruit trees were planted in these orchards, including date palm, fig, olive, pomegranate, almond, carob, pistachio, grapevine and bitter orange. The orchards were irrigated only by runoff water accumulating in runoff-harvesting systems built during the Byzantine and Early Muslim eras, some 1000–1500 years ago, which, despite their antiquity, are still vivid and occasionally fruit bearing today. The oldest olive trees seem to be direct descendants of trees planted during Byzantine times, whereas the youngest trees were planted by the Bedouin population of the Negev Highlands in the last few decades. The fact that the Bedouin population, with very little experience in agriculture, has succeeded to cultivate a large variety of fruit trees in the present harsh arid climate utilizing the historical agricultural installations has important environmental implications. It indicates that the original builders of the desert agriculture systems were highly sophisticated in transforming desert soil into arable land. However, this was achieved through hard labor, involving the construction of a vast number of stone dams and agricultural terraces to divert channels, and the clearing of rocky surfaces. This huge effort indicates that the climate and environment prevailing during the Byzantine–Early Muslim eras was equally harsh and arid; otherwise, the invested labor would not have been justified. We conclude that the Byzantine farmers, with their greater agricultural experience and long heritage in dry land agriculture, have achieved greater success than today Bedouin population, at cultivating of fruit trees under the harsh conditions of the Negev Highlands. Therefore we deduce that the ancient desert agriculture was not the outcome of better climate; rather, the climate prevailing during the relevant historical times was probably dry and harsh, much like today. The fact that the Bedouin population in that geograghical area is cultivating orchards utilizing the same constructions, and technologies indicates that the present environmental and climatic conditions were are suitable for practicing desert agriculture and have hardly changed since the Byzantine era.

Immediate changes in stream channel geomorphology, aquatic habitat, and fish assemblages following dam removal in a small upland catchment

Dam removal is becoming an increasingly important component of river restoration, with >1100 dams having been removed nationwide over the past three decades. Despite this recent progression of removals, the lack of pre- to post-removal monitoring and assessment limits our understanding of the magnitude, rate, and sequence of geomorphic and/or ecological recovery to dam removal. Taking advantage of the November 2012 removal of an old (~190year-old) 6-m high, run-of-river industrial dam on Amethyst Brook (26km2) in central Massachusetts, we identify the immediate eco-geomorphic responses to removal. To capture the geomorphic responses to dam removal, we collected baseline data at multiple scales, both upstream (~300m) and downstream (>750m) of the dam, including monumented cross sections, detailed channel-bed longitudinal profiles, embeddedness surveys, and channel-bed grain size measurements, which were repeated during the summer of 2013. These geomorphic assessments were combined with detailed quantitative electrofishing surveys of stream fish richness and abundance above and below the dam site and throughout the watershed and visual surveys of native anadromous sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) nest sites. Post-removal assessments were complicated by two events: (1) upstream knickpoint migration exhumed an older (ca. late eighteenth century) intact wooden crib dam ~120m upstream of the former stone dam, and (2) the occurrence of a 10–20year RI flood 6months after removal that caused further upstream incision and downstream aggradation. Now that the downstream reach has been reconnected to upstream sediment supply, the predominant geomorphic response was bed aggradation and associated fining (30–60% reduction). At dam proximal locations, aggradation ranged from 0.3 to >1m where a large woody debris jam enhanced aggradation. Although less pronounced, distal locations still showed aggradation with a mean depth of deposition of ~0.20m over the 750-m downstream reach. Post-removal, but pre-flood, bed surveys indicate ~2m of incision had migrated 25m upstream of the former reservoir before encountering the exhumed dam, which now acts as the new grade control, limiting progressive headcutting. Approximately 1000m3 of sediment was evacuated in the first year, with ~67% of the volume occurring by pre-flood, process-driven (e.g., changes in base level) controls. The combination of changes in channel-bed sedimentology, the occurrence of a large magnitude flood, and the emergence of the new crib dam that is a likely barrier to fish movement was associated with major reductions in abundance and richness in sites downstream and immediately upstream adjacent to the former dam in post-removal sampling. At the same time, we documented the presence of four species of fish, including sea lamprey, which were not present above the dam prior to removal, indicating that upstream passage has been achieved; and we also documented lamprey spawning activity at sites immediately below the dam, which had previously been unsuitable owing to an excessively coarse and armored riverbed. Our results point to the importance of interactions between dam removal and flood disturbance effects, with important implications for short- and long-term monitoring and assessment of dam impacts to river systems.

Does vegetation in restored salt marshes equal naturally developed vegetation?

AbstractQuestionDo low stone dams built to prevent erosion and to restore salt marshes through increased sedimentation affect plant species composition?LocationDutch Wadden Sea area (ca. 53°N 5°E).MethodsRelevés (N = 170) were made of the vegetation of two restored salt marsh sites on the barrier islands Terschelling (Grië) and Ameland (Neerlands Reid). Existing relevés of salt‐marsh vegetation (N = 6198) made along the entire Dutch Wadden Sea coast (both the mainland and the barrier islands) were used as a reference. The vegetation of the two restored sites (Grië NLR data) was compared with the reference by (1) simple species‐by‐species analysis based on frequencies in both data sets, and by (2) ordination, where relevés of the restored sites were projected into a multivariate space defined by the species' abundances in the reference relevés.ResultsOut of the 37 species that are common (i.e. have a frequency >5%) in either the Grië NLR data or the reference data, 31 have frequencies that differ by less than a factor of five, and 23 differ by less than a factor of two. Furthermore, the Grië NLR data occupy a space that is well in the centre of the ordination space defined by the reference data.ConclusionsThere are no conspicuous differences between salt‐marsh vegetation behind low dams and the vegetation that has naturally developed on unprotected mudflats. We conclude that measures targeting salt marsh development in view of flood protection do not interfere with nature conservation.

The Impact of Erosion Protection by Stone Dams on Salt-Marsh Vegetation on Two Wadden Sea Barrier Islands

Van Loon-Steensma, J.M. and Slim, P.A., 2013. The impact of erosion protection by stone dams on salt-marsh vegetation on two Wadden Sea barrier islands.This paper describes and quantifies the effect of low stone dams on the extent and composition of salt-marsh habitats on two Dutch Wadden islands: Terschelling and Ameland. The stone dams were built to prevent erosion of the salt-marsh edge. Analyses of a series of aerial photographs taken between 1949 and 2010 show a strong reduction in retreat of the marsh edge on the island of Terschelling, from an average rate of 1.3 m per year before construction of the dam to 0.2 m per year after dam construction. Within 20 years of construction of the dam, sedimentation raised the mudflats between the dam and the former cliff, creating a broader foreshore and new marsh area with typical salt-marsh vegetation cover. The dam on the island of Ameland was built on the remnants of a previous low coastal defense. This reinforcement stopped cliff retreat and led to restoration of the eroded salt-marsh strip. Vegetation surveys along transects perpendicular to the coastline revealed that at both sites, typical pioneer salt-marsh vegetation had developed in the raised area between the erosion protection works and the former marsh edge. These habitats were not found in the reference transects without erosion protection. Based on these findings, we conclude that under favorable conditions for sedimentation, erosion protection by low stone dams may bring about a strong reduction in retreat of the salt-marsh edge while helping to restore an ecological attractive foreshore zone.

The Legacy Sediment Record within the Munroe Falls Dam Pool, Cuyahoga River, Summit County, Ohio

Dams decrease stream gradient and flow velocity, and often trap a stream's sediment load. For 188 years, sedimentation in the Munroe Falls dam pool on the Cuyahoga River, Ohio created a sediment record of both natural and anthropogenic variability. A wooden dam, first constructed in 1817, was replaced with a 3.66-m-high stone dam in 1902 to better serve local industrial needs. Before this dam was removed in 2005, a coring and transect profiling study was undertaken to characterize the dam pool sediments. To a distance of 600 m upstream of the Munroe Falls Dam, only ∼30 cm of sediment overlaid the bedrock in the thalweg, indicating that the deep-water channel was an area of sediment transport. However, in the low-velocity shallow-water margins of the dam pool, up to 3 m of organicrich, clayey silt had accumulated above pre-dam floodplain deposits. Past flooding events are recorded in these dam pool sediment deposits by an increase in woody debris and sand. A distinctive lithology having an oily sheen, abundant woody debris, and elevated trace metal concentrations occurs at depth throughout the deposits in the shallow-water margins of the dam pool. 210Pb dating places the top of this layer at approximately 1918. The 1913 flood in northeast Ohio probably deposited this contaminated layer from washed-out upstream sources. A direct relationship between sediment trace metal (Pb, Zn) and magnetic mineral concentrations demonstrates that magnetic parameters can provide rapid pollution assessment of dam pool sediments.

A comparative study of nutrient transfer via surface runoff from two small agricultural catchments in north China

A field study was conducted to determine the effect of landscape spatial pattern and micro-topography on nutrient transfer via runoff from two catchments into Yuqiao Reservoir in north China. The surface runoff discharge was measured during rainfall events and water samples were analyzed in 2004 and 2005. The mean annual total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) exports per unit area from Caogezhuang catchment (C catchment) were 1.048 and 0.561 kg ha−1 year−1, respectively, while the TN and TP exports from Taohuasi catchment (T catchment) were 0.158 and 0.027 kg ha−1 year−1. In both catchments, village and vineyard shared the highest nutrient export ability due to the accumulated animal waste and heavy application of fertilizer and manure. In T catchment, the distance of village and vineyard was about 1,500 m away from the receiving water and in between were woodland and cropland. In the hydrological pathway, there were sink landscape structures of small stone dams, roadside swale, vegetated filter strip and dry ponds, which could detain water and nutrients. In C catchment, the distance between the village and the receiving water was about 200 m, and the hydrological pathway was compacted roads and ditches with no sink structures. It is suggested that the distance between the pollution source area and the receiving water and the micro-topographical features were the main factors to control the great difference in nutrient export rates.

The role of diversified landscape buffer structures for water quality improvement in an agricultural watershed, North China

The quality of water flow crossing through the watershed ecosystem reflects the integrated effects of many processes along water pathways. Experiments were conducted in a headwater agricultural watershed in North China to study the hydrological and ecological interactions between complex landscapes and nitrogen (N) flow. It was found that a series of artificial and natural buffer/detention landscape structures, which include four stone dams (SDs), a roadside grassed ditch (RGD), a vegetated filter strip (VFS), two dry ponds (DPs) and a riparian buffer zone (RBZ), distributed along the ephemeral stream, could effectively reduce the export load of sediment and N in surface runoff. During rainfall-runoff events, surface flow velocity and runoff volume were reduced from inlet to outlet of each structure. As a result, the retention rate of water by the system was determined to be 50.2%, total suspended solid (TSS) to be 72.7%, total nitrogen (TN) 66.1 %, total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) 52.5%, NO(3)(-)43.6%. and NH4+ 51.6%, respectively. For different N forms, each structure had a different retention efficiency. Dry ponds and stone dams were more effective for particulate N, while the vegetated filter strip and riparian buffer zone were more effective for dissolved N forms. Dry ponds were the reliable structures for controlling sediment and N export in this watershed, while the retention efficiency of pollutants by the roadside grassed ditch was highly unreliable. The hydrological control by this system of flow velocity and runoff volume, which were the two key factors determining the export load of pollutants, was one of the main mechanisms in the retention of sediment and N. The use of diversified agricultural landscape buffer structures is an effective way to reduce the discharge of valuable nutrients and thus pollution of downstream waterbodies. C 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Indigenous Farmer-Managed Irrigation in Sonjo, Tanzania

Despite wide interest expressed in indigenous farmer-managed small-scale irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa, there are relatively few studies of such systems. This paper offers a preliminary description of that practised by the Sonjo in northern Tanzania. Sonjo irrigation involves simple canals carrying water diverted by stone and brushwood dams from spring-fed streams and rivers. Land is irrigated on floodplain and piedmont slopes, and a wide variety of crops is now grown. There is an established system of water allocation. Sonjo irrigation is an example of hill-furrow irrigation of a kind occurring in several places in East Africa. Fuller information of the extent, organization, management and agronomy of these systems is vital as development initiatives are established which attempt to 'improve' or replicate 'indigenous knowledge' about irrigation.

Contemporary Agricultural Patterns in a Mountain Pima Village

The Mountain Pima of the village of Nabogame, Chihuahua, Mexico, cultivate maize, beans, squash, potatoes, peaches, chayote, and other crops. Their diet is supplemented with hunting, fishing, and collection of a variety of wild edible plants, as well as with meat, cheese, and eggs. The people utilize a combination of permanent, fallowed, and temporary fields for planting. Manuring of permanent fields involves the periodic movement of goat corrals to different locations. Erosion control includes building of dikes, stone dams, and trenches to control water movement. As a response to growing population in recent decades, the people have adopted swidden agriculture involving the felling of climax forest on very steep hillsides. This, coupled with increased grazing pressure threatens to have long-term adverse impacts on the local environment.

An Ancient Maya Dam in the Cayo District, Belize

Management of water systems is often considered by anthropologists and archaeologists as a catalytic force in the rise of prehistoric, highly developed societies. Recent studies of the hydraulic engineering skills of the ancient lowland Maya have shown some of their remarkable capabilities for controlling water, including the construction of stone dams. This paper examines new evidence of one such Maya construction located in western Belize, Central America, and discusses the size, form, probable age, and function of this feature.

鹹水養魚場の水の交流について

Recently, cultivation of Hamachi (the young of Seriola quinqueradiata) has been carried on in various districts along the coasts of the Seto Inland Sea. The culture ponds now in use may be divided broadly into two types. The pond of the first type (“channel” type) is constructed by erecting stone dams at both ends of a narrow channel between two islands. Ponds of Ageshima and Kiheijima fish farms are of this type. The pond of the other type (“bay” type) is made by stretching wire-netting or fishing net at the mouth of a small bay. Representatives of the ponds of this type are found at Fukura and Uto fish farms. Sea water flows into or from the ponds, more or less freely, by tide and tidal current, passing through sluices of the dam in the former or through net meshes in the latter. In the present study, investigation was made on some physical and chemical characters and change or circulation of the sea water of several Hamachi-ponds of thses types, with special reference to the possible relation between change of pond water and carrying capacity of the pond. The results obtained may be summarized as follows: 1) In the ponds of the channel type, sea water continually flowed into them through sluices of either of the opposite dams, except about an hour or two at low water. In the ponds of the bay type, on the contrary, the inflow of sea water discontinued from high water to low one. Consequently, the vertical gradient of the environmental factors was less remarkable in the latter than in the former. 2) It was established both theoretically and observationally that the oxygen concentration of the pond water was determined by three principal agents, viz., change or circulation of pond water, absorption of atomospheric oxygen and respiration of fish. It was, likewise, demonstrated that the ammonia concentration was varied mainly due to change of the pond water and excretion of fish. 3) A positive, linear relation was found to exist between the degree of change of the pond water and the carrying capacity of the fish pond.

Summer Behavior of a Family of Beavers in New York State

From June 16 to September 14, 1947, I studied the behavior of a family of beavers (Castor canadensis) at the Edmund Niles Huyck Preserve, Rensselaerville, New York. An adult male and female, two yearlings, and three kits constituted the family. Their lodge was on the shore of a ten-acre pond surrounded by hemlock forest, deciduous wood, and grassy fields. No other beavers lived within a mile. It was hoped that a record of the habits of this family might serve for comparison with the activities and social relations of other individuals living under different environmental conditions, as well as contribute to the long-time study of ecological changes on the Preserve. In 1931 the Preserve was founded to fulfill the late Mr. Huyck's wish that his land be held in trust for the greatest number of people who could enjoy it without spoiling its natural beauty. As stated in the certificate of incorporation, its objectives are to protect the natural beauty and the wildlife of the area and to increase knowledge and love of nature. In 1939 these objectives were furthered by the establishment of a biological research station. During my one summer's stay as a research fellow I tried to observe the beavers whenever they were active and visible, and daily I examined their lodges, dams, trails, and feeding areas. About 250 hours were spent in observation of the animals. Eastern Standard Time was used. This summary of the record was prepared at the University of California Museum of Vertebrate Zoology. I wish to thank Drs. Seth B. Benson and Jean M. Linsdale for their advice and assistance. Dr. W. J. Hamilton, Jr., who is chairman of the scientific advisory committee of the Preserve, made helpful suggestions. The Preserve is about twenty-seven miles southwest of Albany on the Helderberg plateau, a rolling land of low hills and shallow valleys. To the south are the Catskill mountains. To the north and east, fronted by the bold escarpment of the Helderbergs, is the plain of the Mohawk and Hudson rivers. Extensive farming in the past depleted the thin soil of the Helderbergs, and today the Preserve is an instructive example of deserted farmland reverting to seminatural conditions. It has a few stands of fairly mature second growth forest. The original beavers of the Helderbergs were exterminated (Radford, 1907). Recently, though, the New York State Conservation Department introduced stock that may be a mixture of the Canadian and western races (Johnson, 1922, 1927). No animals were released on Huyck lands, and none had moved in by the time W. J. Hamilton, Jr., completed a biological survey of the area in 1937. They first appeared in October of 1939, when E. P. Odum found cuttings on Lincoln Pond. And it was there that the one family of the summer of 1947 lived. Because Lincoln Pond (Fig. 1) is held by a stone dam, the animals do not have to maintain one of their own. The average depth of the pond is five feet with eleven feet the maximum. In the spring and early summer a torrent of water 40 Vol. 31, No. i

Design of a Tilting Dam and its Relation to Backwater on the Gunpowder River

The water supply of Baltimore is taken from the Gunpowder River, the headwaters of which lie in York County, Pa., near the Maryland Une. The river then flows through Baltimore County, Md., in a southeasterly direction, emptying into the Chesapeake Bay about 10 miles northeast of Baltimore. The river, though small, has steep slopes, with a drainage area of 308 square miles above present dam. Its main tributary below the fall Une is the Little Gunpowder Falls, which has the same general characteristics as the larger river. There are several small power developments along its course, of which the Warren and Phoenix Mills are the largest. Previous to 1913 the City of Baltimore received part of its water supply from an impounding reservoir in the Gunpowder Valley, this supply having first been used in 1881. The works for taking this water consist of a stone dam about 25 feet high across the river, about 7 miles northeasterly from the city limits, creating a smaU reservoir, known as Loch Raven, with an original capacity of 510,000,000 gallons, and an area of water surface of 105 acres. The elevation of the crest of the dam is 171.2 feet. All elevations in this article are based on average mean tide in Baltimore harbor. At this time the city possessed the right to divert 170,000,000 gallons per day from the Gunpowder River. This capacity became largely reduced, by the deposit of silt, until in 1900 the reservoir had a capacity of 178,000,000 gallons. At this time dredging was begun, and continued varying in amount until 1909, with an average cost per year of $25,000. No record of yardage is available for the work was done by department forces. Starting in 1906 the Water Department made plans for increased storage capacity.