GRAVITY DAMS-EARTH DAMS A gravity dam is a dam constructed from concrete or stone masonry and designed to hold back water by primarily utilizing the weight of the material alone to resist the horizontal pressure of water pushing against it. Gravity dams are designed so that each section of the dam is stable, independent of any other dam section FORCES ACTING ON GRAVITY DAM: Im the design of a dam, the first step is the determination of various forces which acts on the structure and study their nature. Depending upon the situation, the dam is subjected to the following forces: 1. Water pressure 2. Earthquake forces 3. Silt pressure 4, Wave pressure Ice pressure 6. Self weight of the dam. The forces are considered to act per unit length of the dam, For perfect and most accurate design, the effect of all the forces should be investigated. Out of these forces, most common and important forces are water pressure and self weight of the dam. 1. Water Pressure Water pressure may be subdivided into the following two categories: 1) External water pressure: It is the pressure of water on the upstream face of the dam. In this, there are two cases: ())__ Upstream face of the dam is vertical and there is no water on the downstream side of the dam (figure 1). r downstream side upstream sideH The total pressure is in horizontal direction and acts on the upstream face at a height 3 from the wH? bottom. The pressure diagram is triangular and the total pressure is given by a Where w is the specific weight of water. Usually itis taken as unity. His the height upto which water is stored in m. (ii) Upstream face with batter and there is no water on the downstream side (figure 2). Figure 2 Here in addition to the horizontal water pressure Aas in the previous case, there is vertical pressure of the water. Its due to the water column resting on the upstream sloping side. Py The vertical pressure 72 acts on the length ‘b’ portion of the base. This vertical pressure is given by ; = Oxtsxn) (Lixin) Pressure 2 acts through the centre of gravity of the water column resting on the sloping upstream face If there is water standing on the downstream side of the dam, pressure may be calculated similarly. The water pressure on the downstream face actually stabilizes the dam. Hence as an additional factor of safety, it may be neglectedI) Water pressure below the base of the dam or Uplift pressure When the water is stored on the upstream side of a dam there exists a head of water equal to the height upto which the water is stored. This water enters the pores and fissures of the foundation material under pressure. It also enters the joint between the dam and the foundation at the base and the pores of the dam itself. This water then seeps through and tries to emerge out on the downstream end. The seeping water creates hydraulic gradient between the upstream and downstream side of the dam. This hydraulic gradient causes vertical upward pressure. The upward pressure is known as uplift. Uplift reduces the effective weight of the structure and consequently the restoring force is reduced. It is essential to study the nature of uplift and also some methods have to be devised to reduce the uplift pressure value. Figure 3 wHXB With reference to figure 3, uplift pressure is given by 2 Where 7» is the upl is stored, pressure, B is the base width of the dam and H is the height upto which waterB This total uplift acts at 3 from the heel or upstream end of the dam. Uplift is generally reduced by providing drainage pipes or holes in the dam section. Self weight of the dam is the only largest force which stabilizes the structure. The total weight of the dam is supposed to act through the centre of gravity of the dam section in vertically downward direction. Naturally when specific weight of the material of construction is high, restoring force will be more. Construction material is so chosen that the density of the material is about 2.045 gram per cubic meter. 2. Earthquake Forces The effect of earthquake is equivalent to acceleration to the foundation of the dam in the direction in which the wave is travelling at the moment. Earthquake wave may move in any direction and for design purposes, it is resolved into the vertical and horizontal directions. On an average, a value of 0.1 to 0.15g (where g = acceleration due to gravity) is generally sufficient for high dams in seismic zones. In extremely seismic regions and in conservative designs, even a value of 0.3g may sometimes by adopted, Vertical acceleration reduces the unit weight of the dam material and that of water is to (1-v) times the original unit weight, where *+ the value of g accounted against earthquake forces, ie. 0.1 is when 0.1g is accounted for earthquake forces. The horizontal acceleration acting towards the reservoir causes a momentary increase in water pressure and the foundation and dam accelerate towards the reservoir and the water resists the movernent owing to its inertia. The extra pressure exerted by this process is known as hydrodynamic pressure. . Silt Pressure If his the height of silt deposited, then the forces exerted by this silt in addition to the external water pressure, can be represented by Rankine formula h Wky > acting at 3 from the base. Where, 1-sing = coefficient of active earth pressure of silt = 1+ sin & ® = angle of internal friction of soil, cohesion neglected. n submerged unit weight of silt material.h eight of silt deposited 4, Wave Pressure Waves are generated on the surface of the reservoir by the blowing winds, which exert a pressure on the downstream side. Wave pressure depends upon wave height which is given by the equation . a Ing = 0.032.NPT + 0.763 ~0.271x(F)"* tor <3 km, and fhe = 0.032TF fore > 32 km Where “ris the height of water from the top of crest to bottom of trough in meters. \V—wind velocity in km/hour F ~fetch or straight length of water expanse in km. The maximum pressure intensity due to wave action may be given by Ie Pe = 247 why and acts at 2 meters above the still water surface. Figure 4 The pressure distribution may be assumed to be triangular of height 3 as shown in figure 4. Hence total force due to wave action 7i 5 3 ZX QA e ly Fh qi 2X PPE csngat HY above the revervoie mrfecs 5. Ice Pressure The ice which may be formed on the water surface of the reservoir in cold countries may sometimes melt and expand. The dam face is subjected to the thrust and exerted by the expanding ice. This force acts linearly along the length of the dam and at the reservoir level. The magnitude of this force varies from 250 to 1500 kN/sq.m depending upon the temperature variations. On an average, a value of 500 kN/sq.m may be taken under ordinary circumstances. 6. Weight of dam. The weight of dam and its foundation is a major resisting force. In two dimensional analysis of dam. FAILURES OF GRAVITY DAM Failure of gravity dam occurs due to overturning, sliding, tension and compression. A gravity dam is designed in such a way that it resists all external forces acting on the dam like water pressure, wind Pressure, wave pressure, ice pressure, uplift pressure by its own self-weight. Gravity dams are constructed from masonry or concrete. However, concrete gravity dams are preferred these days and mostly constructed, The advantage of gravity dam is that its structure is most durable and solid and requires very less maintenance. Causes of failure of a Gravity Dam: A gravity dam may fail in following modes: Overturning of dam about the toe Sliding ~ shear failure of gravity dam Compression ~ by crushing of the gravity dam Tension ~ by development of tensile forces which results in the crack in gravity dam. Rene Overturning Failure of Gravity Dam: The horizontal forces such as water pressure, wave pressure, silt pressure which act against the gravity dam causes overturning moments. To resist this, resisting moments are generated by the self- weight of the dam. If the resultant of all the forces acting on a dam at any of its sections, passes through toe, the dam rotate and overturn about the toe. This is called overturning failure of gravity dam. But, ly, such a condition does not arise and dam will fail much earlier by compression.The ratio of the resisting moments about toe to the overturning moments about toe is called the factor of safety against overturning. Its value generally varies between 2 and 3. Factor of safety against overturning is given by Fos um of overturning moments/ sum of resisting moments, External forces > HH | [av _t[i | KEV= Developed frictio im of external horizontal forces greater than vertical self-weight of dam (overacting, sliding occurs) Sliding Failure of Gravity Dam:When the net horizontal forces acting on gravity dam at the base exceeds the frictional resistance (produced between body of the dam and foundation), The failure occurs is known as sliding failure of gravity dam. In low dams, the safety against sliding should be checked only for friction, but in high dams, for economical precise design, the shear strength of the joint is also considered Factor of safety against sliding can be given based on Frictional resistance and shear strength of the dam Factor of safety based on frictional resistance: wv rH FOS against sliding = FO: 1=co-efficient of friction between two surfaces SV = sum of vertical forces acting on dam CH= sum of vertical forces acting on damZ a Rock foundation / YALL 4 ALAPAS DOLLA A LDAP LAL OO Gravity Dam Failure due to Tension Cracks: Masonry and concrete are weak in tension. Thus masonry and concrete gravity dams are usually designed in such a way that no tension is developed anywhere. If these dams are subjected to tensile stresses, materials may develop tension cracks. Thus the dam loses contact with the bottom foundation due to this crack and becomes ineffective and falls. Hence, the effective width 8 of the dam base will be reduced. This will increase pmax at the toe. Hence, a tension crack by itself does not fail the structure, but it leads to the failure of the structure by producing excessive compressive stresses. For high gravity dams, certain amount of tension is permitted under severest loading conditions in order to achieve economy in design. This is permitted because the worst condition of loads may ‘occur only momentarily and may not occur frequently. Gravity Dam Failure due to Compression:A gravity dam may fail by the failure of its material, i.e. the compressive stresses produced may exceed the allowable stresses, and the dam material may get crushed. STABILITY ANALYSIS OF GRAVITY DAMS General Selection of the method of analysis should be governed by the type and configuration of the structure being considered. The gravity method will generally be sufficient for the analysis of most structures, however, more sophisticated methods may be required for structures that are curved in plan, or structures with unusual configurations. 3-4.2 Gravity Method The gravity method assumes that the dam is a 2 dimensional rigid block. The foundation pressure distribution is assumed to be linear. itis usually prudent to perform gravity analysis before doing more rigorous studies. In most ceases, if gravity analysis indicates that the dam is stable, no further analyses need be done. Stability Analysis Assumptions:1. The dam is considered to be composed of a number of Cantilevers, each of which is 1 m thick and each of which acts independently of the other. No load is transferred to the abutments by beam action The foundation and the dam behave as a single unit, the joints being perfect. ‘The material in the foundation and the body of the dam are isotropic and homogeneous. yaen The stresses developed in the foundation and the body of the dam is isotropic and homogeneous. 6. No movements of dams are caused by the Transfers of loads. Stability Analysis Procedure Two dimensional analysis can be carried out analytically or graphically Analytical Method 1. Consider unit length of the dam 2. Work out the magnitude and direction of all the vertical forces acting on the dam and their algebraic sum ie. 5V 3._ Similarly, work out all the horizontal forces and their algebraic sum, Le.. 5 H Determine the level arm of all these forces about the toe 5. Determine the moments of all these forces about the toe and find out the algebraic sum of all those moments ie... M Graphical method In the graphical method, the entire dam section is divided into number of horizontal sections at some suitable interval. Particularly at the place where the slope changes. 1. For each section, the sum of the vertical forces 3V and the sum of all the horizontal forces 5 H acting above that particular section, are worked out and the resultant is drawn, graphically 2. This is done for each section and a line joining all the points where the individual resultants cut the individual sections, is drawn. 3. This line represents the resultant force and should lie within the middle third, for no tension to develop. 4, The procedure should be repeated for reservoir full as well reservoir empty case. Profile of A Dam from Practical Considerations + The elementary profile of a gravity dam, (i. triangle with maximum water surface at apex) is only a theoretical profile. Certain changes will have to be made in this profile in order to cater to the practical needs. These needs are, (i) Providing a straight top width for road construction over the top of the dam (i) Providing a free-board above the top water surface, so that water may spill over the top of the dam due to wave action, etc.The addition of these two provisions, will cause the resultant force to shift towards the heel. The resultant force, when the reservoir is empty, was earlier passing through the inner middle third point. This will, therefore, shift more towards the heel, crossing the inner middle third point and consequently, tension will be developed at the toe. In order to avoid the development of this tension, some masonry will have to be added to the upstream side., which shows the typical section along with the possible dimensions that can be adopted for a low gravity dam section. It should however, be checked for stability analysis. Galleries in Gravity Dams Galleries are the horizontal or sloping openings or passages left in the body of the dam. * They may run longitudinally (i.e. parallel to dam axis) or traversely (ie. normal to the dam axis) and are provided at various elevations. All the galleries are interconnected by steeply sloping passages or by vertical shafts fitted with stairs or mechanical lifts. Function and types of galleries in Dams (i) Foundation Gallery A gallery provided in a dam may serve one particular purpose or more than one purpose. For example, a gallery provided near the rock foundation, serves to drain off the water which percolates through the foundations. This gallery is called a foundation gallery or a drainage gallery. 1. It runs longitudinally and is quite near to the upstream face of the dam. Drain holes are drilled from the floors of this gallery after the foundation grouting has been completed, ‘Seepages is collected through these drain holes. 2. Besides draining off seepage water, it may be helpful for drilling and grouting of the foundations, when this can not be done from the surface of the dam. (ii)inspection Galleries The water which seeps through the body of the dam is collected by means of a system of galleries provided at various elevations and interconnected by vertical shafts, etc. All these galleries, besides draining off seepage water, serves inspection purpose. They provide access to the interior of the dam and are, therefore, called inspection purposes. They generally serve other purposes along with this purpose. They intercept and drain off the water seeping through the dam body They provide access to dam interior for observing and controlling the behavior of the dam. They provide enough space for carrying pipes, etc. during artificial cooling of concrete They provide access to all the outlets and spillway gates, valves, etc. by housing their electrical and mechanical controls. All these gates, valves, etc, can hence be easily controlled by men, from inside the dam itself. pene5. They provide space for drilling and grouting of the foundations, then it cannot be done from the surface of the dam. EARTH DAMS. Anembankment damis a largeartificial dam. It is typically created by the placement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soll, sand, clay, or rock. It has a semi-pervious waterproof natural covering for its surface and a dense, impervious core. This makes such a dam impervious to surface or seepage erosion. Such a dam is composed of fragmented independent material particles. The friction and interaction of particles binds the particles together into a stable mass rather than by the use of a cementing substance. Embankment dams come in two types: the earth-filled dam (also called an earthen dam or terrain dam) made of compacted earth, and the rock-filled dam. A cross-section of an embankment dam shows a shape like a bank, or hill. Most have a central section or core composed of an impermeable ‘material to stop water from seeping through the dam. The core can be of clay, concrete, or asphalt concrete. This dam type is a good choice for sites with wide valleys. They can be built on hard rock or softer sols. For a rock-fill dam, rock-fills blasted using explosives to break the rock. Additionally, the rock pieces may need to be crushed into smaller grades to get the right range of size for use in an embankment dam The building of a dam and the filling of the reservoir behind it places a new weight on the floor and sides of a valley. The stress of the water increases linearly with its depth. Water also pushes against the upstream face of the dam, a nonrigid structure that under stress behaves semiplastically, and causes greater need for adjustment (flexibility) near the base of the dam than at shallower water levels. Thus the stress level of the dam must be calculated in advance of building to ensure that its break level threshold is not exceeded. Overtopping or overflow of an embankment dam beyond its spillway capacity will cause its eventual failure. The erosion of the dam's material by overtopping runoff will remove masses of material whose weight holds the dam in place and against the hydraulic forces acting to move the dam. Even a small sustained overtopping flow can remove thousands of tons of overburden soil from the mass of the dam within hours. The removal of this mass unbalances the forces that stabilize the dam against its reservoir as the mass of water still impounded behind the dam presses against the lightened mass of the embankment, made lighter by surface erosion. As the mass of the dam erodes, the force exerted by the reservoir begins to move the entire structure. The embankment, having almost no elastic strength, would begin to break into separate pieces, allowing the impounded reservoir water to flow between them, eroding and removing even more material as it passes through. In the final stages of failure the remaining pieces of the embankment would offer almost no resistance to the flow of the water and continue to fracture into smaller and smaller sections of earth or rock until these would disintegrates into a thick mud soup of earth, rocks and water. Therefore, safety requirements for the spillway are high, and require it to be capable of containing a ‘maximum flood stage. It is common for its specifications to be written such that it can contain a five hundred year flood. Recently a number of embankment dam overtopping protection systems havebeen developed. These techniques include the concrete overtopping protection systems, timber cribs, sheet-piles, riprap and gabions, reinforced earth, minimum energy loss weirs, embankment overflow stepped spillways and the precast concrete block protection systems. The two principal types of embankment dams are earth and rock-fill dams, depending on the predominant fill material used. Some generalized sections of earth dams showing typical zoning for different types and quantities of fill materials When practically only one impervious material is available and the height of the dam is relatively low, a homogeneous dam with internal drain. The inclined drain serves to prevent the downstream slope from becoming saturated and susceptible to piping and/or slope failure and to intercept and prevent piping through any horizontal cracks traversing the width of the embankment. Earth Dam with impervious cores, are constructed when local borrow materials do not provide adequate quantities of impervious material. A vertical core located near the center of the dam is, preferred over an inclined upstream core because the former provides higher contact pressure between the core and foundation to prevent leakage, greater stability under earthquake loading, and better access for remedial seepage control. An inclined upstream core allows the downstream portion of the embankment to be placed first and the core later and reduces the possibility of hydraulic fracturing. However, for high dams in steep-walled canyons the overriding consideration is the abutment topography. The objective is to fit the core to the topography in such a way to avoid divergence, abrupt topographic discontinuities, and serious geologic defects. For dams on pervious foundations,seepage control is necessary to prevent excessive uplift pressures and piping through the foundation. The methods for control of under seepage in dam foundations are horizontal drains, cutoffs (compacted backfill trenches, slurry walls, and concrete walls), upstream impervious blankets, downstream seepage berms, toe drains, and relief wells.A rock-fill dam with steep slopes requires better foundation conditions than an earth dam, and a concrete dam (or roller-compacted concrete dam) requires better foundation conditions than a rock-fill dam. ‘An earth dam is composed of suitable soils obtained from borrow areas or required excavation and compacted in layers by mechanical means. Following preparation of a foundation, earth from borrows areas and from required excavations is transported to the site, dumped, and spread in layers of required depth. The soil layers are then compacted by tamping rollers; sheep foot rollers, heavy pneumaticctired rollers, vibratory rollers, tractors, or earth-hauling equipment. One advantage of an earth dam is that it can be adapted to a weak foundation, provided proper consideration is given to thorough foundation exploration, testing, and design. Phreatic Line and Horizontal Drain In Earth fill Dams Earth dams are generally built of locally available materials in their natural state with a minimum of processing. Homogeneous earth dams are built whenever only one type of material is economically available,The material must be sufficiently impervious to provide an adequate water barrier and slopes must be relatively flat to make it safe against piping and sloughing. The general design procedure is to make a first estimate on the basis of experience with similar dams and then to modify the estimate as required after conducting a stability analysis except where there isa surplus of material. Rock Toe ‘mua Pe ia Horizontal Filter The upstream slopes of most of the earth dams in actual practice usually vary from 2.0 (horizontal (vertical) to 4:1 and the downstream slopes are generally between 2:1 and 3:1 (USBR 2003). Free board depends on the height and action of waves. USBR (2003) recommends normal free-board about 1.5 to 3 m depending on the fetch. The width of the dam crest is determined by considering the nature of embankment materials, height and importance of structure, possible roadways requirements, and practicability of construction. A majority of dams have the crest widths varying between 5 and 12m.About 30% of dams had failed due to the seepage failure, viz piping and sloughing. Recent comprehensive reviews by Foster et al. (2000a,b) and Fell et al. (2003) show that internal erosion and piping are the main causes of failure and accidents affecting embankment dams; and the proportion of their failures by piping increased from 43% before 1950 to 54% after 1950. The sloughing of the downstream face of a homogeneous earth dam occurs under the steady-state seepage condition due to the softening and weakening of the soil mass when the top flow line or phreatic line intersects it. Regardless of flatness of the downstream slope and impermeability of soil, the phreatic line intersects the downstream face to a height of roughly one-third the depth of water . It is usual practice to use a modified homogeneous section in which an internal drainage system in the form of @ horizontal blanket drain or a rock toe or a combination of the two is provided. The drainage system keeps the phreatic line well within the body of the dam. Horizontal filtered drainage blankets are widely used for dams of moderate height.USBR constructed the 50 m high Vega dam, which is one of the highest with a homogenous section and a horizontal downstream drain. The minimum length of the horizontal blanket drain required to keep the phreatic line within the body of the dam by a specified depth and also equations for maximum downstream slope cover and minimum and maximum effective lengths of the downstream filtered drainage system. The position of the phreatic line influences the stability of the earth dam because of potential piping due to excessive exit gradient and sloughing due to the softening and weakening of the soll mass as if it touches the downstream slope or intersects it. When the dam embankment is homogeneous or when the downstream zone is of questionable permeability, a horizontal drainage blanket is provided to keep the phreatic line well within the dam body, to allow adequate embankment and foundation drainage, and to eliminate piping from the foundation and the embankment. As the dams are made of fine-grained soil, saturation may occur due to the capillary rise above the phreatic surface so itis necessary to account for capillary rise while calculating the minimum length of the downstream filtered drainage. Though the suction head in the soil matrix above the phreatic surface within the dam body due to capillary rise generally improves the stability of the downstream slope, once the capillary fringe intersects the downstream slope the pressure changes from negative (suction) to atmospheric and the downstream face may become a seepage face leading to its failure. Hence the phreatic line should not intersect the downstream slope and it should be a distance greater than capillary rise below the sloping face so that the chances of the sloughing or piping may be nullified Stability and Failure of Earth Filled Dams Failure of earth dams may be: 1. Hydraulic Failure 2. Seepage Failure 3. Structural Failure1. Hydraulic Failure: ‘Overtopping of dams Erosion of the Upstream Surface Erosion of the Downstream Surface Erosion of the Downstream toe Rene Overtopping of dams: This type of dam is made up of only one type of material. Usually porous materials is used. These dams are easy and cheap to construct but cannot be used to make multipurpose large dams. For large multipurpose dams zoned type method is used. Over topping failures result from the erosive action of water on the embankment. Erosion is due to un-controlled flow of water over, around, and adjacent to the dam. Earth embankments are not designed to be over-topped and therefore are Particularly susceptible to erosion. Once erosion has begun during over-topping, it is almost impossible to stop. A well vegetated earth embankment may withstand limited over topping if its crest is level and water flows over the crest and down the face as an evenly distributed sheet without becoming concentrated. The owner should closely monitor the reservoir pool level during severe storms. ii, Erosion of the Upstream Surface: Here zones of different materials are made. Shell is used to give support and stability to the structure of dam. It is made of coarse materials and is pervious in nature. Core is used to make the dam water tight and to reduce the seepage. Fine material is used here, Used in large dams. Erosion of the Downstream Surface: Due to rainfall, snow and winds the downstream surface of the dam also erodes. By providing a section of coarse materials here, this erosion can be reduced or prevented. 2. Seepage Failure: All earth dams have seepage resulting from water permeating slowly through the dam and its foundation. Seepage must be controlled in both velocity and quantity. If uncontrolled, it can progressively erode soil from the embankment or its foundation, resulting in rapid failure of the dam. Erosion of the soil begins at the downstream side of the embankment, either in the dam proper or the foundation, progressively works toward the reservoir, and eventually develops a direct connection to the reservoir. This phenomenon is known as "piping." Piping action can be recognized by an increased seepage flow rate, the discharge of muddy or discolored water, sinkholes on or near the embankment, or @ whirlpool in the reservoir. Once a whirlpool (eddy) is observed on the reservoir surface, complete failure of the dam will probably follow in a matter of minutes. As with over topping, fully developed piping is virtually impossible to control and will likely cause failure. Seepage can cause slope failure by creating high pressures in the soil pores or by saturating the slope. The pressure of seepage within an embankment is difficult to determine without properinstrumentation. A slope which becomes saturated and develops slides may be showing signs of excessive seepage pressure, Seepage failure of the dams is of the following types 1. Piping through the dam 2. Piping through the foundation 3. Conduit Leakage 1. Piping thorugh the dam: There are two kinds of forces acting on the downstream face of the dam: 1. Weight of the material 2. Seepage Force If the seepage force exceeds the weight of the material the water washes away the soil from the plate and creates a hole in the ground. This hole deepens as more and more mateial is taken away from it and extends longitudinally, making a pipe hole called 3. Structural Failure: Structural failures can occur in either the embankment or _—_—the appurtenances. Structural failure of @ spillway, lake drain, or other appurtenance may lead to failure of the embankment. Cracking, settlement, and slides are the more common signs of structural fallure of a embankments. Large cracks in either Ne an appurtenance or the embankment, a A ‘major settlement, and major slides will = require emergency measures to ensure erin Per safety, especially if these problems occur suddenly. If this type of situation occurs, the lake level should be $Sig lowered, the appropriate state and ZF saree local authorities notified, and ape professional advice sought. If the = observer is uncertain as to the seriousness of the problem, the Division of Water should be contacted immediately. The three types of failure previously described are often interrelated in a complex manner. For example, uncontrolled seepage may weaken the soil and lead to a structural failure. A structural failure may shorten the seepage path and lead to a piping failure. Surface erosion may result in structural failure.Failure of downstream face during steady seepage conditions Failure of upstream face during sudden draw down Failure due to sliding of foundation damage due to burrowing animals, Failure of dam due to earthquake veep Usually upper part of the dam is dry and the lower is saturated with water which gives rise to pore water pressure within the voids. Dam body is saturated - All pores / voids are filled with water, pore water pressure is induced. Effective pressure reduces and shear strength of soil decreases 2. When water is suddenly withdrawn or in other words if the level of water in the reservoir reduces suddenly, the soll on the upstream face of the dam body may be highly saturated and has pore water pressure that tries to destabilise the dam and if this force is high enough, it can fail the dam. 3. If the shear strength of the soil on which the foundation is built is weak though the foundation itself may be strong but due to weakness of the soll foundation may slide on the sides and in some cases the foundation itself may be not able to resist the shear force that may have increased from normal due to any reason. 4. Burrowing animals - Small animals living in the holes and pits may have dug theri holes anywhere in te dam body which may widen with the passage of time and can be dangerous. 5. Earthquake Minor defects such as cracks in the embankment may be the first visual sign of a major problem which could lead to failure of the structure. The seriousness of all deficiencies should be evaluated by someone experienced in dam design and construction. A qualified professional engineer can recommend appropriate permanent remedial measures.