Probable maximum flood determination using EPRI research results

Book · Sun Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:220105

Hampton, T L ^[1]

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1. Mead & Hunt, Inc., Madison, WI (United States)

Since the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission`s (FERC`s) 1981 issuance of an order requiring owners of licensed dams to evaluate them for ability to safely pass floods up to, and including, the Probable Maximum Flood (PMF), ongoing research has yielded important results and brought considerably more precision to the science. For several years after issuance of the order, PMF evaluations had been indicating that many dam owners would need to increase dam spillway capacities or otherwise modify their project structures. Research began to step up after a 1989 conference in West Virginia among federal and state agencies, research institute representatives, consultants, and dam owners to discuss the concepts of PMF/PMP determinations. It was decided in late 1989 that a region-specific Probable Maximum Precipitation (PMP) study of Wisconsin and Michigan would be undertaken and the resulting data applied to basins in the study region. In October 1993, the ongoing research culminated in the publishing of Chapter VIII of the FERC`s Engineering Guidelines, Determination of the Probable Maximum Flood. Practical application of the guidelines has most often resulted in lowering the PMF-allowing many dam owners to avoid unnecessary spillway modifications.

• OSTI ID: 220105
• Report Number(s): CONF-9507190--
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

13 HYDRO ENERGY
DAMS
EPRI
FLOODS
FORECASTING
LICENSING
LICENSING REGULATIONS
NUMERICAL DATA
RAIN
RUNOFF
US FERC