Conagua calls for 300 million pesos to assess dams, 115 dangerous

After the passage of ‘Ingrid’ and ‘Manuel’, Conagua working on the report on the state that has the infrastructure in affected entities, as Guerrero, Sinaloa and Tamaulipas.

In the country there are 115 dams and levees with faults that represent a high degree of risk and can result in death, damage or destruction of towns, roads, electricity infrastructure, productive and even “economic paralysis” areas.

This was established by the National Water Commission (Conagua) in a document requesting the Secretariat of Finance and Public Credit authorization to carry 300 million pesos, to study and decide alternatives to improve safety at these dams and, even “not possible, recommend them out of service”.

After Ingrid and Manuel hurricanes, Conagua works in the updated report of dams on the current state saved in the entities that were affected as Guerrero, Veracruz, Sinaloa and Tamaulipas.

At the national meeting of assessing disaster areas, held yesterday, the general director of the Conagua, David Korenfeld reported that special supervision is maintained at 57 dams and 67 rivers “still in alert levels” and working with individuals operating 70 percent of the more than 5 000 100 dams that are in Mexico, “to determine the risk that each one of them, because even small or large, to pour out there moving large amounts of water”

Regarding the 115 identified as high risk and included in the commitment 51 of the Pact for Mexico, found in 23 of the 32 states, with a population of over 90 million people, require 200 analysis Geological, geotechnical , hydraulic, structural and functional as well as land use assessments to verify conditions in the area of influence of dams or levees; in particular invasion of reservoirs and channels, population growth and infrastructure development.

Conagua does not have enough personnel, exploration equipment, laboratories and computer programs to perform such studies.

“From the studies described above and the necessary works arising therefrom not possible, the effects caused by the failure of the dams will be reflected in the loss of human lives, centers of urban and rural population, existing infrastructure (roads or electricity ), productive areas (agriculture, livestock, fisheries, poultry or industrial) and shortages in the supply of drinking water, economic paralysis, among others”, says Conagua in the document.

In the Investment Project delivered by Conagua to the Ministry of Finance for approval, it is noted that during the rainy season or even in normal operation, dams and levees “may represent a hazard for the failure in its structures and in Consequently, damage to the population, their property and infrastructure located downstream, likely to be affected in the event of an overflow due to insufficient work of absence, rupture or total failure of the curtain. The danger is increased by the aging of structures, poor design and lack of conservation. ”

Conagua also established that during the last 20 years, there have been 187 failed or at risk of failure prey, corresponding to 3.7 percent of the total, and most of them are due to overtopping of the curtain failure of the pourer, tubificación of curtain body and landslides.

Also reports that only visual inspections to identify possible anomalies and failures are made, and from those, 115 dams and levees were classified at high risk for the population.

This topic is included in the commitment 51 of the Pact for Mexico, which states review and rehabilitate dams at high risk. The studies will take measures to improve structural, functional and safety.

Conagua estimated that these studies alone with their material and human resources would take 10 years and an investment of 480 million pesos, so he decided, as the best option to hire private or public companies for these analyzes at a cost of 300 million pesos.

According to the plan Conagua, 2018 the shares resulting from the studies will be completed and will know the actions required.

The curriculum specialized storage dams, and levees diverter at high risk, it is contemplated in the budget item 62905.

Source: Milenio