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Just Add Water: Reclamation Projects and Development Fantasies in the Upper Basin of the Colorado River

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Just Add Water: Reclamation Projects and Development Fantasies in the Upper Basin of the Colorado River Utah State University DigitalCommons@USU Library Faculty & Staff Publications Libraries 2008 Just Add Water: Reclamation Projects and Development Fantasies in the Upper Basin of the Colorado River Stephen C. Sturgeon Utah State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/lib_pubs Part of the Library and Information Science Commons, and the Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons Recommended Citation Sturgeon, Stephen C., "Just Add Water: Reclamation Projects and Development Fantasies in the Upper Basin of the Colorado River" (2008). Library Faculty & Staff Publications. Paper 62. https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/lib_pubs/62 This Contribution to Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Libraries at DigitalCommons@USU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Library Faculty & Staff Publications by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@USU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Bureau of Reclamation: History Essays from the Centennial Symposium Volumes I and II Bureau of Reclamation U.S. Department of the Interior Denver, Colorado 2008 Table of Contents Commissioner’s Introduction ............................................................................xxvii Senior Historian’s Introduction .......................................................................... xxix Bibliography of Papers Published in other Locations ......................................xxxiii VOLUME 1 Section I: Technological and Engineering History of Reclamation Concrete Dam Evolution: The Bureau of Reclamation’s Contributions to 2002. Gregg N. Scott, Larry K. Nuss, and John LaBoon ................. 1 I. Introduction ...........................................................................................1 II. Masonry Dams and the Early Years ......................................................4 III. The Amazing Arch and Developments of the 1920s .......................... 10 IV. Prelude to Hoover Dam ...................................................................... 14 V. Hoover Dam—Quantum Leaps Forward ............................................19 V.A. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part V—Technical Investigations: Bulletin 2— Slab Analogy Experiments, Denver 1938 ........................................22 V.B. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part V—Technical Investigations: Bulletin 3—Model Tests of Boulder Dam, Denver 1939 ....................................................................................23 V.C. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part V—Technical Investigations: Bulletin 4—Stress Studies for Boulder Dam, Denver 1939 ....................................................................................23 V.D. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part V—Technical Investigations: Bulletin 6—Model Test of Arch and Cantilever Elements, Denver 1939 ....................................................................24 V.E. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part VII—Cement and Concrete Investigations: Bulletin 1—Thermal Properties of Concrete, Denver 1940 ....................................................................................24 V.F. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part VII—Cement and Concrete Investigations: Bulletin 4—Mass Concrete Investigations, Denver, 1940. ...................................................................................25 V.G. Boulder Canyon Project Final Reports: Part VII—Cement and Concrete Investigations: Bulletin 2—Investigations of Portland Cement, Denver, 1940 ....................................................................................26 VI. Hydraulics for High Concrete Dams ................................................ 26 iii VII. World War II Era - Large Gravity Dam ............................................30 VIII. The Post-War Boom—Developments Continue ...............................34 IX. The Failure of Malpasset Dam—Rock Mechanics and Foundation Design Develops ...........................................................37 X. The Double-Curvature Arch—A New Standard for Effi ciency .........................................................................................40 XI. Structural Analysis Developments ....................................................44 A. Development and Computerization of the Trial Load Method ....................................................................................44 B. Linear Structural Analysis ..........................................................49 C. Nonlinear Structural Analysis ....................................................51 C.1. Nonlinear structural analysis of Monticello Dam ................................................................51 C.2. Nonlinear Structural Analysis of Pueblo Dam ...................................................................... 54 XII. Roller-Compacted Concrete—Rapid Construction for Gravity Dams .............................................................................55 XIII. Transition to Dam Safety—Applying Technology to Reduce Risk .....................................................................................59 XIV. Conclusions ......................................................................................63 Bibliography of Sources Consulted (in the order used in the paper.) .......63 100 Years of Embankment Dam Design and Construction in the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Richard Lyman Wiltshire .................... 67 Introduction ...............................................................................................67 Reclamation’s Design and Construction Organizations............................ 68 Period I (1902-1918)—Reclamation’s Design and Construction Organizations ..............................................................68 Period II (1919-1933)—Reclamation’s Design and Construction Organizations ..............................................................70 Period III (1934-1944)—Reclamation’s Design and Construction Organizations ..............................................................70 Period IV (1945-1975)—Reclamation’s Design and Construction Organizations ..............................................................71 Period V (1976-2002)—Reclamation’s Design and Construction Organizations ..............................................................71 Modern Embankment Dam Design and Construction ..............................72 Reclamation’s History of Embankment Dam Design and Construction .............................................................................................. 78 Period I (1902-1918)—Reclamation’s History of Embankment Dam Design and Construction ......................................79 Upstream Impervious Zone Supported by Downstream Rockfi ll Zone ...................................................................................84 Upstream Impervious Zone Supported by Downstream Gravel Zone .....................................................................................84 iv Modifi ed Homogeneous Section ...................................................... 85 Belle Fourche Dam ...........................................................................85 Period II (1919-1933)—Reclamation’s History of Embankment Dam Design and Construction ................................... 93 Period III (1934-1944)—Reclamation’s History of Embankment Dam Design and Construction ................................... 99 Period IV (1945-1975)—Reclamation’s History of Embankment Dam Design and Construction ................................. 103 Period V (1976-2002)—Reclamation’s History of Embankment Dam Design and Construction ................................. 116 Conclusion ..............................................................................................131 Endnotes ..................................................................................................131 Historical Development of Durable Concrete for the Bureau of Reclamation. Timothy P. Dolen ................................................................ 135 Introduction .............................................................................................135 What is Concrete? ...................................................................................135 Early Obstacles to Durable Concrete ......................................................136 Mechanisms of Deterioration in the Western United States ................... 137 Sulfate Attack ....................................................................................137 Alkali-aggregate Reactions ...............................................................138 Freezing and Thawing Deterioration ................................................139 Developing the State-of-the-Art of Concrete Technology ......................139 The Early Years–The Concrete Pioneers (1902-1918) ..................... 140 The Abrams Generation (1918-1928) ...............................................142 Boulder Dam / The “Hoover Generation” (1928-1945) ................... 143 The Post-War Generation: “The Constructors” (1945-1990) ........... 146 The Present Generation and Beyond (1990- ) ................................147 Conclusions .............................................................................................147 The Author’s Closure: The Challenge for the Twenty-fi rst Century—Identify, Protect, Preserve ................................................149 Endnotes ..................................................................................................150
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