Page - 18 - in Book of Full Papers - Symposium Hydro Engineering

Two dams (F and I) that had deficiencies and were damaged in the 2013 earthquake were repaired and subsequently performed much better in the 2016 earthquake. Seiches were noted in some reservoirs in the 2016 earthquake with heights estimated to be at least 1.2m and in one case overtopped a saddle dam. Table 1 Summary of observations Dam ID H1 (m) Lake Grassmere Earthquake Kaikoura Earthquake Rrup2 (km) OBSERVATIONS Rrup (km) OBSERVATIONS A 17 12.4 Movement of riprap, minor cracks 26 Minor movement of riprap B 19 14.1 No damage 28 No damage C 13 14.1 No damage 29 No damage D 26 17.0 No damage 20 No damage E 17 13.7 Deformation upstream shoulder, cracks in crest 20 Additional deformation and cracks F 10 10.7 Deformation upstream shoulder, cracks in crest 22 No damage G 15 11.4 No damage 22 No damage H 6 4.1 No damage 20 No damage I 12 7.0 Deformation of upstream shoulder, cracks in crest 22 Minor cracks J 8 15.0 No damage 31 No damage K 11 6.1 Not constructed 21 Minor cracks upstream side dam crest 1H = embankment height 2Rrup = closest distance to fault rupture 3. CONCLUSIONS Earthfill embankments designed to modern standards and constructed to high standards can withstand very high levels of ground motion with minor damage. Embankments where the earthfill is not properly conditioned and poorly compacted can be expected to deform with the potential for significant longitudinal cracking and some potential for transverse cracking where the abutment profile is irregular or stepped. 18