New Calaveras Dam: Performance After Five Years

Construction work on the 220-foot-high earth and rockfill dam, spillway, and outlet works for the Calaveras Dam Replacement Project began in August 2011 after 8 years of geotechnical investigations, design, environmental review, and regulatory review. Construction of the new dam was completed in November 2018, and initial reservoir filling began in January 2019.

Monitoring dam performance is critical, especially during initial filling, requiring an integrated effort between the owner, the engineer of record, jurisdictional dam safety agency and construction team. To coordinate this effort, an initial reservoir fill plan was developed to cover roles and responsibilities between these entities, and inspection and monitoring protocols during initial filling until the reservoir spills for the first time. Over the past 5 years, the dam has performed, and is continuing to perform, as intended. Continued monitoring is necessary to confirm adequate dam safety, especially following large earthquakes and heavy rainfall events that can be expected due to climate change.