Latest News
Toddbrook investigation reports
The Government independent review report on the Toddbrook investigation was released on 16 March and can be found here.
Access to a video on the report findings by CRT Chief Executive Richard Parry and the CRT investigation report can be found here.
We strongly encourage members to take time to carefully study and learn from the findings.
Calendar changes for eventsThe current global health crisis has had an inevitable impact on the events that we had hoped to bring you this year. As the situation with coronavirus and any government restrictions over the coming months is very hard to predict, the forward planning for our events is also in a state of flux. Dates for future events will be determined when circumstances allow. |
Reservoir Committee – new membershipThe following notice has been prepared by the ICE Reservoirs Committee: “Applications are requested for forthcoming vacancies on the Reservoirs Committee. From the October 2020 meeting, the Committee will be appointing 1 Supervising Engineer and 3 All Reservoirs Panel Engineers to the Committee. The appointees will serve a term of three years, or shorter if determined by the Committee. Applications shall be submitted to the secretary of the Committee at Institution of Civil Engineers (at reservoirs@ice.org.uk), by 1 May 2020. Applicants must include a brief statement (200 words) on their suitability for appointment. All applicants shall have their employer’s approval to serve on the Committee, if appointed |
BDS Toddbrook Reservoir Seminar and International Speaker events postponedWe deeply regret that, principally due to concerns regarding the coronavirus, we are unable to schedule the seminar on the Toddbrook Reservoir incident on 16 March. The new date proposed for the event is Monday 6th July at the ICE, London. The postponement will allow the membership to become more aware of the incident details ahead of the seminar. Firstly, we plan to host a technical site meeting at Toddbrook Reservoir site on 21 April, assuming that no health restrictions apply to such an event with small groups at the time. Details will be provided shortly. Secondly, we understand that the Government Independent Review report (which was originally due to be released at the end of 2019) will be released in the coming days. The CRT investigation report is likely to be released at the same time. Our members will now have good time to read these reports well before the seminar. |
Impact of Coronavirus on ICOLD and BDS eventsICOLD has announced that the 2020 annual meeting scheduled to be held in New Delhi, India on 4-10 April will now be held on 26 September – 1 October on account of the present global health concerns. You can read the announcement on the ICOLD site: www.icold2020.org. If you are aware on any persons planning to travel to the event who are not members of the BDS please forward this message accordingly. The BDS seminar on the Toddbrook Reservoir incident and response at the ICE in London on 16 March is currently still scheduled. If you have booked a place to attend but subsequently decide to view the event remotely please let the ICE know so that catering requirements can be adjusted accordingly. |
2018 PIR annual reportThe 2018 post-incident reporting annual report for England has been published by the Environment Agency and is available here. |
Send us your videos!We recently received a video produced by Storm Geomatics to promote the British reservoir industry and their contribution to it. You can view the video here. We will be happy to receive similar videos from other companies with the aim of producing a catalogue of interesting videos on dam engineering. |
ICOLD UpdateICOLD has been working on an international declaration on the safety of dams and this has now been published and uploaded to our website. ICOLD are seeking comments on the paper “Dam failures - statistical analysis” by 15 March. The paper can be found on the ICOLD website (Circular Letter 1964). The European Working Group on Internal Erosion will host a meeting in Sheffield on 7-10 July. Abstracts are requested before 15 March. Details can be found here.
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Toddbrook Reservoir Incident SeminarMembers can now register a place at the upcoming Toddbrook Reservoir Incident day seminar, which will take place on 16th March 2020 at One Great George Street, London. Registration is free but required for attendance. The programme for the day can be found here.
To register, users should go to www.ice.org.uk/events/private-events/the-toddbrook-reservoir-incident-london. |
New CIRIA and Environment Agency GuidesA number of new guidance documents are available which may be of interest to members:
In addition, publication of CIRIA R1071: Pipework, Valves and Associated Equipment in Dams. A guide to operation, maintenance, condition assessment and rehabilitation (the subject of this month’s evening meeting) is due this Spring. |
ICOLD UpdateBulletins 150 (Cutoffs for Dams) and 160 (Dam decommissioning guidelines) are available to view on the ICOLD website. Comments are invited on the draft bulletin Flood evaluation, hazard determination and risk management. This year’s annual meeting of ICOLD is in New Delhi, India in the week commencing 6 April. Planning is already well underway for the 2021 ICOLD Congress in Marseilles, France which will be held on 5-11 June 2021.
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BDS Dissertation PrizeThis prize is awarded based on research dissertations submitted as part of a BEng, MEng, or MSc degree. Three prizes will be awarded (1st, 2nd, 3rd). The original deadline for submission is Jan 20 2020 and the university should submit on behalf of the students. We are extending the deadline to Feb 28 2020. |
BDS Undergraduate Research BursaryThis year we have relaunched this bursary scheme with a new format. The BDS is inviting academic staff to submit research proposals in topics related to dams and reservoirs engineering. Proposals should include the name of the student selected by the supervisor to carry out the study during the summer of 2020 - contact details are within the news item page. The deadline is Feb 28 2020. |
21st BDS ConferenceThe 21st BDS Conference will be held at the University of Nottingham between 16th and 19th September 2020. The main theme of the conference will be; Sustainability within the context of UK dam development, management and operation. Synopses, maximum 250 words, should be submitted by 30th November 2019 to the BDS Honorary Technical Secretary. |
BDS Supervising Engineer Mentoring Scheme 2019/2020The steady decline in reservoir panel engineers is a real threat to the dam industry. Encouraging and supporting the next generation of dam engineers is key to overcoming this threat. With this in mind, the British Dam Society Supervising Engineer Mentoring Scheme has been established. |
10th International Conference on Scour and Erosion (ICSE 10) - Call for AbstractsThe conference theme is: understanding of processes and design for protection/mitigation from scour and erosion through integration of hydraulics and geotechnics. Prospective authors are invited to submit abstracts for papers up to 300 words, which should include the title of the article, name(s) and affiliation(s) of the author(s), postal and electronic addresses, and at least three keywords. To submit your abstract, please fill out the submission form and upload your abstract on the webpage available here. Abstract Submission Due: August 31, 2019 Notification of Acceptance: September 15, 2019 Manuscripts Due: December 15, 2019 Final Publication-Ready Manuscripts Due: April 30, 2020. |
BDS Photography Competition 2019Submit your photographs without delay to be in with a chance of winning the 1st prize of £200; 2nd Prize of £100 or 3rd Prize of £50 and having your photographs published in Dams & Reservoirs and/or used on the BDS website. Photographs to be submitted via the Member's Area of the BDS website (https://britishdams.org/members-area/bds-members-area/competitions) The BDS photography competition will now be subjected to automatic picture/ file size validation checks as part of the submission process. The files will be checked to ensure the picture width is greater than 3000pixels and the file size is no larger than 6MB - any photographs not meeting these requirements will be rejected. Closing date for entries is 31st October 2019 and the winners will be announced at the BDS Prize Meeting on 18th November 2019 Full details can be found on the competition poster available here. |
Contact details for Media EnquiriesThe contact details for any media enquiries to the BDS is media@britishdams.org
This email is monitored and a response to your enquiry will be made as soon as possible by one of our team. |
Toddbrook Reservoir IncidentI am sure that all of our members are concerned with the recent and on-going events at Toddbrook Reservoir. At the present time the dam has yet to be declared safe for the return of the residents. The BDS and ICE has been giving interviews to the media in relation to the on-going incident. I am sure you can imagine and appreciate that the number of requests for interviews has far exceeded our capacity to respond. The dam is a 24m high Pennine embankment dam dating from 1831. Works were carried out in the 1970’s to provide an auxiliary spillway on the embankment. We have no doubt that a formal investigation of the incident will be carried out on behalf of the Environment Agency in due course. The BDS will do all that we can to help share the lessons to be learned from this incident and to encourage debate in due course. In the meantime our thoughts are with the residents of Whaley Bridge. Alan Warren
BDS Chair
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Notice of Elections of New Members to the ICE Reservoirs CommitteeApplications are requested for forthcoming vacancies on the Reservoirs Committee. From the October 2019 meeting the Committee will be appointing 1 Supervising Engineer and 2 All Reservoirs Panel Engineers to the Committee. |
BDS Photography Competition – Requirements Update.The 2019 BDS photography competition will now be subjected to automatic picture/ file size validation checks as part of the submission process. The files will be checked to ensure the picture width is greater than 3000pixels and the file size is no larger than 6MB. We are advertising this procedure now so that you have a chance to check and adjust your camera settings, thus ensuring any photographs you take in the intervening period will be compliant for submission in the 2019 photography competition. Happy snapping!! |
EA Reservoir Safety Biennial Report: January 2017 to December 2018The EA have published their Biennial reservoir safety report for the period 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2018 which sets out actions the Environment Agency has taken in its role as the reservoir regulator. The report is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/reservoir-safety-biennial-report |
SEPA Guidance Documents For Completion Of Engineer Reports And Written Statements.SEPA, in consultation with members of the Scottish reservoirs industry, have recently produced two guidance documents regarding the completion of Schedule 12 - Inspection Reports and Schedule 15 – Supervising Engineer Written Statements. |
Incident Reporting At Scottish ReservoirsAlthough the reporting of incidents at reservoirs is still undertaken on a voluntary basis in Scotland, as the relevant section of the Reservoirs (Scotland) Act is yet to be commenced, it was recognised that it would be good practice to encourage reservoir managers to report any incidents occurring at their reservoir. |
2018 BDS Conference Proceedings – Discussions NotesThe 2018 BDS conference proceedings webpage has been updated to include the discussion notes for the six technical presentation sessions. |
BDS Mentoring SchemeThis BDS initiative is aimed at helping BDS Members of any age or discipline to achieve their goals within the dams and reservoirs profession. |
ICOLD 2019 - 11th ICOLD European Club SymposiumAbstracts for the Symposium can be submitted online until 15 January 2019. Additionally, a two-day International Seminar on ‘Flood Management, spillway design and public safety’ will be held before the Symposium. Details on the program, abstract submission and International Seminar are given on the website. |
ICOLD Workshop on Numerical Analysis of DamsThe ICOLD Technical Committee on “Computational Aspects of Analysis and Design of Dams” announces the organisation of the 15th Benchmark Workshop on Numerical Analysis of Dams that will be held in Milan on 9 to 11 September 2019. |
EA Interpretation On Timing Of Inspections Under The Reservoirs Act 1975 (England)The Environment Agency, as enforcement authority for England, has produced their interpretation of the required timing of service reservoir inspections and the 1st inspection after a section 8 inspection under the Reservoirs Act 1975 in England. |
The Reservoir Safety Advisory Group (RSAG) Has A New NameThe Reservoir Safety Advisory Group (RSAG) has a new name to better describe what the Group do – they are now called the Research Advisory Group for Reservoir Safety (RAGRS). |
Hydropower-Europe ProjectICOLD was successful in winning funds for this project with the aims to: (1) engage all relevant stakeholders; (2) address the challenges and prioritize needs (3) write and disseminate the research agenda and the technology road map up to 2050. |
Notice of Elections of New Members to the ICE Reservoirs CommitteeApplications are requested for a forthcoming vacancy on the Reservoirs Committee. From the October 2018 meeting the Committee will be appointing three Supervising Engineers to the Committee. |
New Environmental Permitting Guidance for Reservoir Operators Produced by the Environment AgencyThe Environment Agency, which regulates discharges from reservoir scour valves in England, has produced new environmental permitting guidance for reservoir operators. |
Reservoirs (Scotland) Act 2011 - New Guidance on Discontinuance and AbandonmentThe Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), who regulate reservoirs in Scotland under the Reservoirs (Scotland) Act 2011, has produced some new guidance on Discontinuance and Abandonment. |
ICOLD European Club Dam Legislation reportThe Working Group on Dam Legislation has re-issued this report following an update by the Netherlands. |
A Guide to Breach PredictionUnder the supervision of breach experts, Dr Mark Morris and Dr Mohamed Hassan, at HR Wallingford, a summer student from Surrey University undertook an independent review of the current state-of-breach models available across the world, and produced a ‘Dummies Guide’ type report on the different techniques that can be used to model a breach |
How Does the Reservoirs Committee Operate?The panel system of reservoir engineers was set up in its current form by the Reservoirs Act 1975. That Act required the Secretary of State to set up panels of appropriately qualified civil engineers to inspect and supervise reservoirs, appointed after consultation with the President of the Institution of Civil Engineers, or a committee set up for that purpose |