Dams and Dykes

Building, raising and expanding Dams

The Reinforced Earth® solution has been used to build various types of MSE walls for dams and dykes associated to:

• Embankment dams
• Overflow dams
• Saddle dams
• Check dams
• Dry dams
• Dam extensions
• Intake structures
• Outlet structures

Reinforced Earth® MSE walls for dams and dykes are a tested solution for building earth dams, dam crests and abutments. Building a vertical or sloping Reinforced Earth® structure will dramatically reduce the volume of backfill when compared with traditional profiles. Our design approach ensures internal and external stabilities as well as the necessary drainage control.

Crest raising to increase the height of the structures becomes simple and straightforward by building back-to-back Reinforced Earth® walls. We evaluate stresses at the base of the existing crest and assess the bearing capacity for any additional load cases.

Expanding the width of an existing dam while maintaining a right of way is simplified by using a permanent MSE wall for dams and dykes.

Flexible construction solution for dykes 

Dykes are essential structures for river training, flood protection and coastal protection. The GeoMega® concept developed by Reinforced Earth Company Ltd. (RECo) is a customized engineered solution particularly well adapted to the construction of vertical or steep faced dykes and levees in coastal and inland environments.

This state-of-the-art technique is based on the use of geosynthetic reinforcing strips which provides superior soil reinforcement for the structures. In addition these GeoMega® structures can be composed of waterproofing membranes, drainage geocomposites, and site specific erosion protection against currents and waves.

Protecting and preserving

Within our “Protect” line of solutions, we integrate erosion control and natural risk hazard protection into your project. We provide design and materials to install GeoMega® solutions, which are used to provide protection on the river or sea side of the levees and dykes.

Waterproofing

Our Reinforced Earth® MSE walls for dams and dykes can be combined with UV resistant linings on their exposed faces to provide water tightness. We have also developed a solution for fitting a geomembrane on the back face of our Reinforced Earth® concrete panels, thus providing for waterproofing protected from floating debris, ice or vandalism on the exposed faces.

Rehabilitating, strengthening, and upgrading

Strengthening centuries old dams built from cyclopic concrete, masonry concrete or even under designed dams can be rehabilitated by improving their stability or increasing their overflow capacity by using Reinforced Earth® solutions.
In addition dams and dykes sometimes newly built structures are also considered to be upgraded due to the rising sea levels and the increasing severity of climatic events. In such incidents our engineers will analyze the health of the existing structures and will develop solutions as required to:

• improve stability with facing replacement or overlays, tieback stability measures, ground improvement, and structural retrofit measures
• increase the protection or storage capacity brought by the structures by increasing the height and upgrading the waterproofing