The Esmeralda dam impounds 758 Mm3 to supply water to the 1,000 MW Chivor hydropower plant in Colombia, commissioned in 1977. After an extreme flood in 2004, the minimum operating level was increased to protect the power plant from sediment abrasion. Thereafter, the Sustainable Sediment Management Plan was developed, including a design for three new intakes at different levels, among other measures.
Read MoreNathpa Jhakri hydropower plant suffered its first sediment problems a year after commissioning, in 2004. The high soil erosion during the snowmelt in the Himalayas results in large sediment loads, in particular quartz particles that can severely damage the plant’s technical equipment. Protecting the hydraulic machinery from abrasion and preserving the reservoir storage in the future called for effective sediment management strategies.
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