ENHANCEMENT OF THE STUDY OF WATER LEAKS ON THE LEFT BANK IN THE OUIZERT ALGERIAN DAM

Abstract

Water leaks are costly but common issues in the Algerian dam. Whatever their reasons, they progressively threaten the stability of the constructs and reduce the capacity of the reservoir. The Ouizert dam, the focus of this study, was built in an arid zone approximately 35 km from southwestern Mascara city, where water supply deficit is a serious challenge. The dam was designed with a maximum capacity of approximately 100 million m³ on Wadi El Hammam. It supplies Oran city, Arzew industrial pole, and El Habra agricultural perimeter and contributes to the Bouhanifia dam. However, it never reached its maximum level due to considerable side-leakages estimated at approximately 1 m³/s. It was thus deemed necessary to perform physisco chemical analyses and piezometric measurements. The data used concerned leakage flow, piezometric coast, distances between the piezometers, physico-chemical parameters (pH, temperature, conductivity), shores of the lake and threshold heights (different water sampling depths of the piezometers) and served to determine the variation between the exfiltration water discharge and the reservoir level. The obtained results can serve as decision-making tools to implement urgently needed dam reclamations.