Storage Reduction of Mujeb Dam Reservoir in Jordan due to Sedimentation

Abstract

The flow of water from the watershed upstream of a reservoir is capable of eroding the drainage area and of depositing material either upstream of the reservoir or in the still water of the reservoir causing reservoir sedimentation. The impact of reservoir sedimentation is reducing the storage capacity, decreasing ability to produce hydroelectric power and shortening of the life of the reservoir. In the present work, Al-Mujeb dam has been selected to estimate the quantity of sediment that reaches its reservoir using the modified universal soil loss model (MUSLE). Calibration and verification were carried out using measured data for volumes of runoff and cumulative sediment yields obtained from Eco-Sounder device. The quantities of sediment yield have been predicted for the next decade, when the reservoir storage capacity will be reduced by 23%. Strategies are recommended to update the Eco-Sounder measurements then the prediction process for another decade of time, and to reduce the soil erosion and minimize the sedimentation in the reservoir.

Keywords: Sedimentation, Yield, Dams, Reservoir, Erosion, Soil Loss, Storage, Jordan.

DOI: 10.7176/JEES/10-6-10

Publication date:June 30^th 2020