New concept of raised barrage for “Valley Storage” with unrestricted low-level silt sluicing hydraulic structure

(Research paper on unique combination of low-dam-cum barrage for valley storage)

A new concept in silt sluicing hydraulic structure to mitigate power shortage, water shortage, super-flood alleviation that involves no land acquisition, no land compensation, no population displacement and as by-product to serve as far better, long life substitute for Kalabagh Dam besides climate mitigating.

I suggest long life, far more beneficial, non-controversial, technically feasible, mid-term, fast track, and a unique design concept for a raised barrage to avail site potential at the end of the Indus River valley as well to serve as a substitute for Kalabagh Dam at elevation near 700 feet.

The concept is to build 100 feet low-dam to function as dead storage and to gain height for the raised barrage up to elevation 800 feet. On the crest of this dam a 50 to 60 feet high conventional barrage be built to function as an unrestricted low-level sluicing hydraulic structure to evacuate silt out of the reservoir. It will create about 3.0 maf of storage, that can repeatedly be filled as the Indus flow at this site is about 93 maf. The low-dam-cum barrage concept is only possible in a valley and not in plain. The unique feature of this project is that no land acquisition and land compensation is involved for the reservoir.   

This may hopefully, end 37 years long lunatic political, and technical controversy on hydraulic design for silt sluicing between the KBD consultants and WAPDA because of wrong and ordaining TOR. Refer to Volume N, Appendix N of the project feasibility report. Thus, status quo over KBD prevailed. The controversy and status quo resulted in no dam building in 37 years that resulted in darkness in the country by crippling load shedding that seems to be a permanent fixture if four multipurpose dams on the Indus are not built with in 10 years besides other measures. According to a newspaper, peak shortage of power touched 6800 MW. WAPDA Chairman revealed that power need by the year 2030 would be 130,000 MW.

Status quo in not building mega dams in time resulted not only in crippling load shedding but in super-flood devastation of one-fifth of Pakistan and in water shortage for agriculture creating insecurity for food.

 I therefore suggest a unique raised barrage in concord with the silt sluicing hydraulic design suggested by the KBD project consultants in the KBD feasibility report for  evacuating silt. A barrage is an unrestricted low-level silt sluicing structure, giving free passage to super-floods and to the evacuation of silt out of the reservoir.

 I gave suggestion for the raised barrage in 1994, when I was Chairman IRSA. It went un-noticed as water development is out of vision.          

The project planning concept for valley storage at the end of the

Indus River

The project conceived is a combination of a low dam-cum-barrage all confined to the Indus River valley. The storage created by the raised barrage at the end of the Indus River would be about 3.0 maf. The reservoir full supply level will be with in the valley away from Attock gorge. The Indus River annual run-off at the site of barrage is about 93 maf. The reservoir would repeatedly be filled (3+3…) maf.

The barrage project will not cause inundation of Peshawar valley as it allows unrestricted passage to flood flows. The sediment load from a catchment area of 110500 squire miles at this site is 540 million tons, equivalent to 0.3 maf annually that will be evacuated.  There is possibility of irrigating barren lands in Karak District and Bannu Districts from the river lake from high elevation of 850 or 860. This needs investigation. The project would be acceptable to the Government of KP and other provinces as it is equally beneficial to all. However, Sindh and Baluchistan will get water at critical time of crop sowing. There is no displacement of population and land inundation as reservoir is with in the valley.

The barrage storage will serve as balancing reservoir between power generation and irrigation water conservation. The project can start at once and completed with in about 3 years. The reservoir will silt up to elevation 800. Storage between elevation 700 to 800 feet is dead storage. The river will re-adjust its slope on the upstream. Only the barrage will be visible on the upstream. The project would generate hydropower between 2000 MW to 6000 MW on run-of-the-river with storage to support.

The project will be a unique water regulating and water distributing structure for IRSA. The cost of the project would be about $ 3.0 billion dollars. The project would give breathing time by immense relief to power shortage, flood havoc and water shortage till four mega dams are built on the Indus including Katzarah and Basha dams and one at Guroh Dop on Panjkora River with storage capacity of 8.5 maf.

Because of climate change, super flood phobia prevails in the minds of 20 million people  that devastated one-fifth of Pakistan in 2010 floods. Therefore, building of Katzarah Dam and Guroh Dop Dam are of dire necessity to control 100% super-floods on the Indus and Kabul River. The raised barrage project is extremely necessary if the Prime Minister and the President pays attention to these vital national issues. Chinese may be asked to implement it on war footing. It appears no one cared a hoot for water and power development after 1974. This negligence resulted in flood devastation, crippling load shedding, acute water shortage that affected irrigated agriculture and food insecurity.

Afforestation of mountain range from the Indus River Lake to mitigate climate change

Another benefit from the raised barrage project is that water from the Lake created at the end of the Indus River can be lifted by small pumps for the afforestation of the mountain range along both banks of the Indus River in a length of 93 miles. This is to mitigate climate change. Similar action may be taken on Tarbela Reservoir for growing forest.

Ignorance of water issues that has destroyed Pakistan’s economy and agriculture in the Indus Basin

There are more than one dozen serious water issues facing Pakistan today and delay in resolving them have not only destroyed Pakistan economy but has also seriously harmed the country’s irrigated agriculture thus contributing to the country’s poverty and loss of revenue. The resolution of these issues needs to take place immediately. This article discusses four important issues. These are the absence of management to control super floods that destroyed one-fifth of Pakistan most developed areas last year; the failure to construct water based power projects that has destroyed the country’s industry and lowered its export earnings, acute water shortages in the irrigation system that has adversely affected irrigated agriculture and caused food insecurity in one of the world’s largest irrigated system; a matter displaying gross incompetence and lastly the rapid silting of mega reservoirs like Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma that has caused the loss of 6.6 maf of gross storage capacity.

It is difficult to conceive how we could be so negligent about our water and power infrastructure on which Pakistan’s future and its people’s welfare depends? So far, none of the country’s multiple agencies entrusted with protecting the nation’s critical interests in these areas has been able to solve them. Based on my 50 years experience and being distinction  holder in Dams and Reservoir Engineering, I make the following suggestions to solve these four issues effectively so that Pakistan can prosper and not be a failed state.

First, I suggest an easy mid-term fast-track solution to the four issues. We will be able to build a “Raised Fateh Barrage” that is a low dam-cum barrage at the end of the Indus River valley. This concept is only feasible in a river valley and not in a plain. It will create about 3.0 maf storage that will be repeatedly filled since the Indus annual run-off at this site is 93 maf. The raised barrage will generate about 2000 MW to 6000 MW of hydropower on run-of-the-river with the support of 3.0 maf storage behind.

 The storage of 3.0 maf will be confined with in the Indus valley, short of Attock gorge. Therefore, it does not require land acquisition and land compensation. Secondly, it will not cause flooding or water-logging of Peshawar valley. There may be a possibility to irrigate Karak and Bannu areas by lifting Indus water from the lake created by the barrage. This needs investigations. The structure will function as Balancing Reservoir. This project will thus be acceptable to the KPK Province.

The work on this project can start immediately and completed with in three year’s time. The project will have an indefinite life span, as it is an unrestricted low-level sluicing structure. About 540 million tons of silt equivalent to about 0.3 maf annually pass at this point from a catchment area of 110500 squire miles.

This site is only feasible for a high barrage that is supported by a 100 feet low dam and building a conventional barrage on the crest of the dam. The dam is proposed to be built up to an elevation 800 feet with 50 feet to 60 feet high barrage built over the crest of the dam. The reservoir elevation at full supply would come to 850 or 860 feet. The unrestricted low level sluicing structure would give benefits of a multipurpose mega dam like Basha Dam, with additional benefits involving no cost of land. The barrage would retain about 3.0 maf of storage water. The reservoir will silt up to elevation 800, the crust of the dam, on the upstream, readjusting Indus River bed slope. The proposed structure would function as a balancing reservoir, and as water regulating and distributing infrastructure. The cost of the project would be about $3 billion. It will mitigate the four issues to some extent till mega dams are built upstream of this site at Katzarah and on its downstream.

          

The second part of the plan is to build the unique, multipurpose Katzarah Dam having 35 maf storage capacity that is six times the capacity of Basha Dam. It will generate up to 15,000 MW of hydropower if built to its full height. It will stop silt flow in the Indus water from the highly erosive soil of Skardu valley. The dam will perform the function of excellent Water shed Management infrastructure. It will increase the life of Basha Dam from 80 years to 800 years. Katzarah would function as replacement storage also to compensate for the loss of 6.6 maf of gross storage due to rapid silting of Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma reservoirs. Katzarah would provide also additional irrigation facilities to barren areas in the four provinces.

The third part of the plan is to control the flows of the Kabul River in Pakistan therefore dams will need to be built on its major tributaries, like Swat,  Panjkora and Chitral Rivers. There is an excellent dam site on Panjkora tributary having storage capacity of 8.5 maf, generate about 700 MW of hydropower and amazingly control 100% floods in Kabul River. The biggest advantage of Guroh Dop Dam is that it can store 4.0 maf of Chitral River floodwater by diversion through a tunnel releasing water in the catchment area near Chutiatan village, into the reservoir of Guroh Dop Dam. It is super project and it is a shame why it has not been developed so far. Munda about 7 miles on the downstream of Akhori is a single purpose power dam, selected for construction.

The other dangerous issues facing our agriculture is our inability to combat salinity and sodicity due to absence of surface and subsurface tile drainage system. And, our inability to modernize the wasteful, incompatible and obsolete canal irrigation system wasting about 45 to 50 maf of water. This needs Integrated Comprehensive Water Management. There is need for the adoption of water saving methods of sprinkle and drip irrigation. There is need for bringing higher lands under irrigation to meet food needs of the rapidly growing population.

These proposals will remove shortage of water, make available more water to implement paras 2, 4, 6, 7 and 14(e) of the Water Accord.

Internationally there is another threat regarding Pakistan’s water security. This is the water capture by India who build 33 dams in occupied Kashmir as reported by Senator John Kerry. This is an existentialist threat to Pakistan. It will cripple flows received by it, during the low supply period of growing Rabi and early Kharif crops. Chenab and Jehlum River will become seasonal as a result, and in violation of the IWT 1961. It is not known, why Pakistan’s water management remained inert on this matter for the last 40 years.

As far as Kalabagh Dam is concerned, it is politically and technically controversial. It needs technical study of what the feasibility report says regarding its hydraulic design controversy between the KBD consultants and WAPDA in the light of its bizarre TOR. The side-valley Akhori Dam has already been rejected by Dr Pieter Lieftnick in 1968 on many grounds, one of them is raising Tarbala Dam’s height by 15 feet that may not be possible. In short, inept management of Pakistan’s existing water resources is a criminal failure of an immense proportion. One wonders whether we are blinded as a curse from Allah!