Towards a geological and geotechnical susceptibility zoning of dam works and projects in Argentina

Abstract

The biggest uncertainty in any major engineering project is associated with the ground behavior, coupled with a growing need of building new dams on sites with increasingly complex geological conditions. Being aware of this challenge, it is then proposed to address the uncertainty management in a systematic way, without neglecting any of the classic stages of a project. The present work is framed in what we could call an inventory stage in knowledge development. Starting from a document compilation of built and projected dams in Argentina, coupled with a general analysis of the geological, geotechnical, seismological and structural characteristics of the national territory, a preliminary classification of dams is presented, associated to its susceptibility to suffer complex situations in its foundation and reservoir area. This process allows the development of a first ranking of priority exploitations, which deserve special attention, either in their inspection and maintenance (executed dams), or a greater investment in basic studies, during the pre-tendering stages (projected dams). A series of regions within the national territory are identified, whose geotechnical characteristics justify moving forward in knowledge towards a prefeasibility stage.