State of Practice of Design of Large Dams in the Philippines

Author: Roy Anthony C. Luna (MSCE) Ramon D. Quebral (PhD), Peter Paul M. Castro (MSCE), Ma. Jocelyn B. Jocson, Gian Paulo D. Reyes (MSCE), Maria Cristelle A. San Antonio, Luis Ariel B. Morillo, and Laurice Angeli V. Villaflor

Presenter: Laurice Angeli V. Villaflor

The geographic setting of the Philippines, within the Circum-Pacific Ring of Fire and along the path of typhoons, makes it prone to several seismic and climate related hazards. It is in this context that design codes for engineering structures in the country were developed and continually updated.

Dams are major infrastructures built in the Philippines for irrigation, hydropower, water supply, inland navigation, and flood control. Most of the existing large dams in the country were designed under a number of different codes or design guidelines from other countries. There is no standardized design code for dams that has been established in the country so far, leading to the utilization of international codes as the main basis of design.

This paper presents a review of the state of practice of dam design in the Philippines. Adopting the updated international design codes, and utilizing available advanced tools and techniques, a design methodology for earth and concrete dams (and appurtenant structures) in the Philippines is presented. Local conditions and area-specific design considerations are discussed – covering geological, seismic, meteorological, hydrologic, geotechnical and structural considerations.

Conference/s:

CHINCOLD International Symposium on Seismic Safety of Large Dams and Reservoirs 2018

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