28 Dec 2023

NR 23-43: Bluff Scaling Continues at Right Bank Tailwater of Cordell Hull Dam

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District announces the area below Cordell Hull Dam known

23 Jan 2023

Structural Health Monitoring key to a more resilient, modern infrastructure network

Given the aging condition of much of the nation’s navigation infrastructure, managers need accurate and real-time information on the conditions of such structures as locks, dams and bridges operating well beyond their expected design lives.

15 Jan 2023

USACE announces high-flow release at Coyote Valley Dam

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers San Francisco District (USACE) will begin a series of high-flow releases from Coyote Valley Dam at Lake Mendocino starting mid-day on Monday, Jan. 16, in response to reservoir levels and improving downstream conditions on the Russian River. No increased releases will occur at Warm Springs Dam at Lake Sonoma during this time.

20 Dec 2022

Public meeting scheduled for Watertown Flood Risk Management Feasibility Study

OMAHA, Neb. — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District in cooperation with the city of Watertown, South Dakota, will hold a public meeting on Tues., Jan. 31, 2023, at 1901 Ninth Ave. SW in Watertown. The purpose of the meeting is to share information on the recently initiated flood risk management feasibility study. The study location includes the Big Sioux River and its tributaries within the vicinity of the Watertown community.

7 Oct 2022

Raystown Lake Drawdown

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Baltimore District, has begun a controlled lake drawdown from summer pool elevation 786’ NGVD to a target of 8 feet below at 778’ NGVD, which will occur incrementally throughout the months of October and November.

27 Sep 2022

North Bend Park at John H Kerr scheduled for closure

North Bend Park at John H Kerr Dam and Reservoir (Buggs Island), 64 N. Bend Drive, will be closed

4 Feb 2022

National Levee Safety Program hosts virtual workshops to capture stakeholder insights

In January and early February 2022, working in coordination with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began hosting a series of virtual public workshops to gather stakeholder input on a national approach for developing a new integrated framework for managing reliable levee systems and improving community resiliency in areas behind all levees throughout the Nation. This input will be used to help shape the National Levee Safety Program.

28 Sep 2021

Backward Erosion Progression Rates from Small-Scale Flume Tests

Abstract: Backward erosion piping (BEP) is an internal erosion mechanism by which erosion channels progress upstream, typically through cohesionless or highly erodible foundation materials of dams and levees. As one of the primary causes of embankment failures, usually during high pool events, the probability of BEP-induced failure is commonly evaluated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for existing dams and levees. In current practice, BEP failure probability is quantitatively assessed assuming steady state conditions with qualitative adjustments for temporal aspects of the process. In cases with short-term hydraulic loads, the progression rate of the erosion pipe may control the failure probability such that more quantitative treatment of the temporal development of erosion is necessary to arrive at meaningful probabilities of failure. This report builds upon the current state of the practice by investigating BEP progression rates through a series of laboratory experiments. BEP progression rates were measured for nine uniform sands in a series of 55 small-scale flume tests. Results indicate that the pipe progression rates are proportional to the seepage velocity and can be predicted using equations recently proposed in the literature.