Spelga dam
Spelga Dam in the Mourne Mountains (South of Belfast) in Northern Ireland was under construction and started to move. All construction stopped for a year while it was fully investigated. The dam was needed to supply fresh wholesome water to the growing city of Belfast.
It turned out that the dam was being constructed on top of a “mother boulder” as described in the report conducted by the Structural Engineers at the time. All work was stopped and the boulder and clay underneath it was removed before the dam started again on top of the actual bedrock of the valley.
This was the last time explosives had been used in peacetime before the troubles and it led to the creation of the Structural Engineers Institute of Ireland.
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings
- Barrage.
- Caisson.
- Check dam.
- Coastal defences.
- Dam construction.
- Dredging.
- Dual purpose reservoirs.
- Flood defences.
- Hydropower.
- Irrigation.
- Land reclamation.
- Relief well.
- River engineering.
- Tidal lagoon power.
- Thames barrier.
- Trading systems for water resources.
- Water engineering.
- Water transfers and interconnections.
Featured articles
Check out some of the best features and news from Designing Buildings as well as key stories from around the web.
Historic England publishes research into embodied carbon when retrofitting traditional buildings.
New Prime Minister delivers on ECA call for cut in electricity costs.
CIOB reacts to the announcement of Andy Burnham as Prime Minister.
Heritage and conservation science workforce survey - Have your say.
England's Suburbs 1820-2020. Book review.
New, more proportionate and targeted approach for higher-risk building assessments.
Government brings British Steel into public ownership.
UKCW Birmingham returns with bold new theme and focus.
New guidance published on competence requirements for self-certification schemes.
Construction Management, 8 July
NEETs crisis drives interest in trades, but apprenticeships barriers remain.
Passive fire protection webinar
MEP services penetration seals.
Where its at podcast (and video) - The role of the Architectural Technologist as an Expert Witness.
Comments
[edit] To make a comment about this article, click 'Add a comment' above. Separate your comments from any existing comments by inserting a horizontal line.