Citation

Hood K, Perez RA, Cieplinski HE, Hromadka TV, Moglen GE, McInvale HD. J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc. 2019; 55(1): 89-101.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, American Water Resources Association, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/1752-1688.12703

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Earthen embankment dams comprise 85% of all major operational dams in the United States. Assessment of peak flow rates for these earthen dams and the impacts on dam failure are of high interest to engineers and planners. Regression analysis is a frequently used risk assessment approach for earthen dams. In this paper, we present a decision support tool for assessing the applicability of nine regression equations commonly used by practitioners. Using data from 108 case studies, six parameters were observed to be significant factors predicting for peak flow as a metric for risk analysis. We present our work on an expanded earthen dam break database that relates the regression equations and underlying data. A web application, regression selection tool, is also presented to assess the appropriateness of a given model for a given test point. This graphical display allows users to visualize how their data point compares with the data used for the regression equation. These contributions improve estimates and better inform decision makers regarding operational and safety decisions.

Language: en

Keywords

computational methods; data management; earthen dam database; earthen dam failure; hydraulic structures; regression selection tool; risk assessment; watersheds; web application