Aging infrastructure is less able to withstand the challenges posed by a climate change. The combination of these factors significantly increases the risk of dam failures and associated disasters.
To address extreme floods caused by climate change, a project for enhancing the capacity of aging dams is being pursued. The main activities include installing auxiliary spillways and parapet walls to ensure hydraulic stability, expanding the capacity of existing spillways, and installing new gates.
In response to unprecedented heavy rainfall and earthquakes, safety enhancement projects for aging dams are being carried out. The main activities include installing low bottom outlets for geotechnical and structural stability, reinforcing intake towers for seismic resistance, and remediation grouting for vulnerable core layers.
To improve dam management in the face of climate change and aging water infrastructure, digital transformation technologies are actively being introduced. These technologies include drones, robots, AI, smart sensing, and digital twins, with efforts to accelerate their adoption through pilot projects.
Water energy is the most effective means towards carbon neutrality, hence, active projects for renewable energy such as hydroelectric, geothermal, floating solar, and pumped-storage power generation are being pursued.