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Geotechnical engineers consider whether
the rock or soil foundation
below a dam is strong enough to support its weight. They check
whether the dam foundation is permeable.
If it is, then the foundation has to be treated to prevent
water from the reservoir leaking out below or around the dam.
They are responsible for designing
embankment dams, as
they have an understanding of how rockfill
and earthfill behave.
Geotechnical engineers investigate the
stability of the slopes around the reservoir too. If a landslide
into the reservoir occurred, it could cause a large wave that
could flow over the top of the dam and cause flooding of properties
and deaths downstream.
This happened at Vaiont Reservoir in Italy in 1963, and the
resulting flood killed about 2200 people.
Some geotechnical engineers spend a lot
of time outdoors, collecting soil and rock samples from proposed
dam sites. These samples are tested in laboratories to determine
their properties, e.g. their strength and permeability.
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