Brève histoire des barrages au Japon

Depuis les temps les plus reculés, le peuple japonais est familiarisé avec l'irrigation, l'approvisionnement en eau et les installations de lutte contre les inondations. La culture du riz a été introduite au Japon vers le 10e siècle avant Jésus-Christ. Les premières rizières équipées d'installations de génie civil se trouvent dans le sud-ouest du Japon. Au 6e siècle, l'empereur de l'époque a mis en place un gouvernement centralisé. Il a préparé des systèmes d'irrigation pour les rizières et a attribué une certaine superficie de rizières aux agriculteurs. Une partie de la récolte était prélevée à titre d'impôt. Sayama-ike, le plus ancien barrage en terre pour l'irrigation encore utilisé aujourd'hui, a été construit au début du 7e siècle.

Au 20e siècle, de nombreux grands barrages destinés à contrôler les inondations et à produire de l'énergie hydroélectrique ont été construits dans les hautes terres centrales, où l'on trouve de hauts sommets montagneux de plus de 3 000 mètres d'altitude et de nombreuses rivières au cours rapide et escarpé.

En 1950, le barrage de Miboro (H=131m), premier barrage moderne en enrochement du Japon destiné à la production d'énergie hydroélectrique dans les hauts plateaux du centre du pays, a été planifié. Le projet s'est heurté à une opposition locale farouche à la construction. Le président de la compagnie hydroélectrique publique a négocié sérieusement, poliment et de bonne foi avec les résidents de la zone submergée proposée, et après plus de 7 ans de négociations, il est finalement parvenu à un accord sur la relocalisation.

En guise de remerciement aux résidents, un grand cerisier de 400 ans (20 m de haut, 6 m de tronc) a été transplanté sur le site du barrage dans la zone submergée. Bien que ce travail de transplantation ait été très difficile, les cerisiers ont pris racine et, chaque printemps, ils sont en pleine floraison, les pétales s'éparpillant encore dans le réservoir. L'histoire de cette transplantation a été adaptée dans des romans et des films dramatiques.

En 1963, le barrage de Kurobe (H=186m), le plus haut barrage voûte en béton, a été construit dans une zone de réserve naturelle. Toutes les installations principales, telles que les conduites d'amenée, les conduites forcées, les centrales électriques et les routes d'accès, ont été souterraines. La route Tateyama-Kurobe-Alpine est un itinéraire touristique de 40 km empruntant des bus électriques, des téléphériques et des tunnels ferroviaires. Vous y découvrirez des paysages spectaculaires ainsi que la faune et la flore alpines, qui attirent près d'un million de visiteurs par an. (https://www.alpen-route.com/en/)

L'histoire des difficultés rencontrées pendant la construction a fait l'objet d'un film à grand spectacle avec Toshiro Mifune, acteur mondialement connu des films du réalisateur Akira Kurosawa. Plusieurs films dramatiques liés à d'autres barrages ont également été diffusés. Ces films aident les gens à comprendre les complexités techniques et sociales rencontrées lors de la planification, de la construction et de l'exploitation.

L'expérience du barrage de Yamba

Lorsqu'un projet de barrage est annoncé, il suscite généralement de vives protestations. Les négociations pour la relocalisation deviennent difficiles. Le gouvernement japonais prépare donc des lois et des règles pour l'indemnisation des pertes, l'aide à la reconstruction des moyens de subsistance et la promotion du bien-être des personnes relogées. Cependant, dans le cas du barrage de Yamba, il a fallu beaucoup de temps pour conclure les négociations en raison d'une forte résistance.

Le barrage de Yamba (H=116m) a été planifié en 1967 dans la partie supérieure du bassin de la rivière Tone dans la plaine de Kanto, dont la superficie est de 17 000 km2 et qui comprend l'agglomération de Tokyo. En cas de fortes pluies dans ce bassin, Tokyo peut subir de graves dommages dus aux inondations. Le gouvernement a renforcé les digues de la rivière Tone et construit plusieurs barrages de contrôle des inondations. Mais le barrage de Yamba n'a pas pu être construit, en raison d'une forte résistance. Après 42 ans de négociations, les négociations ont presque abouti en 2009.

La même année, le Parti libéral démocrate (PLD), le parti au pouvoir depuis près de 50 ans, a perdu les élections générales et le Parti démocrate du Japon (PDJ) est entré en fonction. Le PDJ a déclaré la politique "du béton au peuple", ce qui signifie "valoriser les personnes, et non les projets de construction, dans les priorités budgétaires". Le budget national a été restructuré, ce qui a entraîné la suspension de nombreux grands projets d'infrastructure tels que de nouveaux barrages, de nouvelles autoroutes et de nouveaux ports.

Symbole de la politique du "concret pour le peuple", l'administration DPJ a déclaré que "le projet de barrage de Yamba serait suspendu et réexaminé". Les habitants qui avaient décidé d'accepter la relocalisation ont été surpris par la suspension soudaine du projet de barrage.

En 2009, le réexamen des fonctions du barrage de Yamba sur la base de la situation actuelle a commencé. Ce réexamen a duré plus de deux ans et s'est achevé en septembre 2011. La conclusion était que le barrage était le plus avantageux pour le contrôle des inondations, l'utilisation de l'eau et l'énergie hydroélectrique. La politique a été à nouveau modifiée et le projet de construction a été relancé. En décembre 2012, le PDJ a perdu les élections générales.

L'entrepreneur était Shimizu corporation, Tekken corporation et IHI infrastructure Joint venture. L'entrepreneur a ensuite repris la construction du barrage, travaillant jour et nuit.

En 2019, les travaux de construction du barrage étaient presque terminés et il était temps de procéder à la mise en eau. La mise en eau initiale a commencé le 1er octobre 2019. Pendant la mise en eau initiale, le typhon Hagibis, extrêmement puissant, s'est déplacé vers le nord depuis l'océan Pacifique et a attaqué le centre de l'île principale à la mi-octobre 2019.

Le bassin de la rivière Tone a connu des précipitations extrêmement importantes. Malgré la première retenue, le barrage de Yamba a stocké les eaux de crue provenant des précipitations et a permis d'éviter les dommages causés par les inondations dans les zones situées en aval, y compris dans l'agglomération de Tokyo. Le niveau du réservoir s'est élevé de 54 mètres en deux jours, ce qui représente une vitesse anormale d'élévation du niveau de l'eau dans la première retenue. L'inondation, dont le débit maximal était d'environ 2 500 m3/seconde en raison de précipitations cumulées de 347 mm, a été stockée avec succès et son volume s'élevait à 75 millions de m3.

Heureusement, le barrage, les culées et le réservoir n'ont subi aucun dommage.

Les péripéties du projet de barrage de Yamba, les négociations de longue date sur la relocalisation, sa suspension et son redémarrage étaient bien connus. Le fait incroyable que ce barrage ait permis de contrôler les inondations dans le bassin de la rivière Tone et dans la région métropolitaine de Tokyo lors de la mise en eau initiale a été largement rapporté par les médias. Cette nouvelle a donné l'occasion au public de réaffirmer les avantages des barrages pour les changements récents de l'environnement naturel, tels que l'augmentation des fortes précipitations.

(Ces deux photos sont fournies par le Bureau de gestion intégrée des barrages de la rivière Tone, ministère de l'aménagement du territoire, des infrastructures, des transports et du tourisme)

Tourisme autour des barrages

Le tourisme de barrage est populaire autour des grands barrages du Japon. De nombreux barrages permettent au public d'accéder au sommet du barrage et au réservoir. Des célébrités ont déclaré être des passionnés de barrages et des programmes télévisés sur le tourisme de barrage ont souvent été diffusés. Ces mesures ont grandement contribué à créer une perception positive des barrages. Aujourd'hui, les barrages ne suscitent plus autant d'objections, même si certains groupes de défense de l'environnement s'y opposent toujours. La JCOLD a apporté son soutien à l'édition d'un guide de voyage de 200 pages, tout en couleurs, intitulé "How to Walk Around the Dams" (Comment marcher autour des barrages). Les auteurs sont huit passionnés de barrages privés, qui ont rédigé des informations complètes sur 200 barrages importants, avec de belles photographies, des cartes de localisation, les caractéristiques des barrages et des informations sur les attractions à proximité, telles que les sources thermales.

Le barrage d'Oku-Tadami (H=157m, http://okutadami.co.jp/English-okutadami/) est une centrale hydroélectrique de 560 MW avec l'un des plus grands réservoirs alimentés par le marais d'Oze. Le marais d'Oze est une zone de réserve naturelle, la zone humide s'étend à une altitude de 1 700 mètres, avec des ruisseaux, de petits étangs, des prairies, des forêts et une variété d'itinéraires de randonnée. Les pistes de ski et de snowboard sont recouvertes de neige poudreuse en hiver dans les environs du barrage.

Oze marshland in winter

Conclusion

Au Japon, les barrages faisaient l'objet d'opinions négatives en raison de la réinstallation des populations, de la destruction de l'environnement et des dépenses considérables. Cependant, la population a réaffirmé les avantages des barrages, à savoir la capacité de contrôler les inondations, la capacité de produire de l'énergie renouvelable et la capacité de stocker de l'eau pour l'eau du robinet. En dépit de diverses préoccupations, les projets de barrages apportent une valeur à la société humaine sur le long terme, 100 ans ou plus, et ne doivent pas être découragés par une pensée ou une opposition à court terme et par les situations politiques actuelles, qui peuvent changer dans un certain laps de temps.

par Hiroyasu SUGIYAMA Ancien président de JCOLD (Commission Japonaise des Grands Barrages)

Dams and Sustainability

Committee T of ICOLD has planned a series of webinars dedicated to the sustainability of dams in their full life cycle. The first webinar aimed to define the content and what should be addressed in the development of future work. The video of this Webinar#1 is now available here.

DAMS & SUSTAINABILITY ICOLD Webinar #1 - 29/05/2024

PROGRAM

• Webinar presentation Michel Lino (President of ICOLD)
• Introduction. Objectives & Purpose Luc Deroo (ICOLD TC-T) Francisco Ortega (ICOLD TC-P)
• The framework: SDGs Francisco Ortega (ICOLD TC-P)
• Dams and the environment (social and ecological aspects beyond CHG) Peter Amos (ICOLD TC-G)
• The sustainability of concrete dams Marco Conrad (ICOLD TC-D)
• The LCA method. An example Joachim Verdier (Lhoist Group)
• Accounting externalities and short/long term analysis Lamis Aljounaidi (PIA)
• Various levels of ambition, perimeters and metrics Luc Deroo (ICOLD TC-T)
• Q&A Session
• Moderation Steve Usher (HP&D)

!! NEW !! Webinar #2 just released - 07 May 2025

This second Webinar is intended to introduce the general principles of a Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) methodology. The LCSA comprises not only environmental LCA, but also social and economic life cycle cost assessment. ICOLD has invited a distinguished group of experts to present the key components of the LCSA and examples of how it is applied in other sectors, with the aim of adapting it to dams and reservoirs.

The webinar features the following presentations:

• Webinar presentation - Luc Deroo & Francisco Ortega (TC-T of ICOLD)
• General introduction to LCSA with a focus on dam-specific aspects - Sonia Valdivia (World Resources Forum)
• Sustainability criteria from the perspective of funding institutions - Nicholas Zmijewski (World Bank)
• Tools and methods of the Hydropower Sustainability Standard (HSS) that are applicable to dams and reservoirs - Kimberly Lyon (World Bank / HSA Council Chair)
• Sustainability framework for earthworks - Jean-Pierre Magnan (EU Working Group on Sustainable Earthworks)
• Life cycle cost assessment of dams - Alena Raymond (AmSpec)
• Biodiversity footprint and LCA: Case studies and analyses - Bonaventure Fontanier (EDF)
• Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA): An example from the mining sector - Isabel Wolf (Technical University of Berlin)

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United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, following consultations with the Executive Board of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), wrote to the President of the General Assembly requesting the General Assembly to confirm Achim Steiner of Germany as the new Administrator of UNDP for a term of four years. The General Assembly confirmed the nomination on 19 April.

The 55-year-old Brazil-born German citizen has been in the trenches of environmental activism since before his service at the UN, including work with the Washington-based International Union for Conservation of Nature.

He’s even devoted his professional life – for example, while working as secretary general of the World Commission on Dams (WCD) – to pet projects.

A commentator said : “In 2000, the WCD published a report showing how reservoirs posed dangers to the environment despite their importance for development. Notable for its holistic and sustainable approach, it is this viewpoint that Steiner brings to his new office.” (our emphasis).

The UN had been considering other candidates, not just Steiner. France’s environmental minister, Segolène Royal, was a final contender – and noticeably unhappy about the UN’s selection. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had actually promised the job to a woman, Royal said. She speculated that the UN tapped Steiner due to Germany’s role as an important donor for the UNDP, which relies on (voluntary) donations from individual nations.

Mr Steiner was Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme between 2006 and 2016.  He previously served as Director-General of the United Nations Office in Nairobi from 2009 to 2011, Director-General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature from 2001 to 2006, and as Secretary-General of the World Commission on Dams, in South Africa, from 1998 to 2001.

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 Press Release

Dam Failure in Laos

The International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) is following the situation very closely as information is just coming out about the collapse of the saddle dam at the Xe Pian Xe Namnoy Hydroelectric Dam, in Laos.

ICOLD newly elected President Michael Rogers made the following statement:

“Our deepest condolences go out to the people of Laos impacted by this tragedy, especially those families who have lost loved ones and/or their homes.

Dams are critical pieces of not only physical, but also socio-economic infrastructure that supply renewable power, storage for agricultural, industrial, municipal and community water supply. Like other large infrastructure in our societies, dams provide critical service, but also pose high risks that must be addressed during the planning, design and construction phases.   The precautionary principle of dams to prevent and/or mitigate adverse downstream safety consequences informs and is at the heart of the ICOLD Mission.

ICOLD has been working for 90 years to promote the safe and sustainable design and construction of dams.  As an organization of 100 nations committed to the safety of all dams around the world, ICOLD stands ready to assist and support the project owner and the national dam safety organization in Laos to assess the situation and work towards recovery.  Moving forward, it will be important to understand the full cause of this apparent failure so that important lessons may be shared with other nations and dam owners. This is the heart of ICOLD mission and the main reason why it was founded.  For example, during its recent Congress in Vienna (July 1-7 2018), ICOLD organized an important open workshop on the lessons learned from the Oroville Spillway Incident (USA, 2017).

Again, our heartfelt condolences go out to the thousands of persons downstream of this dam that have been impacted by this tragedy and ICOLD stands ready to support Laos in any way possible.”

Tags : Bureau Central - Evènements - Newsletter - News - Presse - Press - Central Office - Events - Regional Club - Club Régionaux - World Register of Dams - Registre Mondial des Barrages

Oroville Dam, ICOLD President intervenes on the radio

By Michael Rogers and Emmanuel Grenier

Aerial View of the Oroville Dam (photo by California Department of Water Resources)

There is now a rush to repair the spillways at the Oroville Dam in Northern California and lower the water level in Lake Oroville before rain arrives again. It is feared that damage to an emergency spillway could dump large amounts of water into the Feather River, which runs through downtown Oroville. This fear led to the evacuation of nearly 200 000 people living under the lake. The main dam (235m high) was never in danger and remains safe. The Oroville Dam issue started with an unexplained structural failure of a lower part of the 3000-foot-long gated service spillway.

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SHERPA is an EU-funded project that will develop and validate a range of innovative technologies designed to refurbish existing hydropower plants and improve their efficiency and environmental performance.

SHERPA is composed by 7 entities from 4 different EU countries (Spain, Germany, Ireland and Belgium):  Iberdrola Generación S.A. (project coordinator), Asociación de Investigación Metalúrgica del Noroeste, Voith Hydro Holding GmbH & Co. KG, EPRI Europe DAC, Innomerics SL., AECOM Spain, DCS, S.L., and Zabala Innovation.

more details here: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101172849.

Click the image below to view the press release:

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Brief history of dams in Japan

From ancient times, the Japanese people have been familiar with irrigation, water supply and flood control facilities. Rice cultivation was introduced to Japan around the 10^th century BC. The earliest rice paddies with civil engineering facilities can be found in south-west of Japan. In the 6th century, the Emperor at that time established centralized government. He prepared irrigation systems for paddies and allocated a certain area of paddy to farmers. A certain portion of the harvest was collected as tax. Sayama-ike, an oldest earth-fill dam for irrigation still in use today, was built in the early 7th century.

In the 20^th century, many large dams for flood control and hydropower have been constructed in the central highland, as there are high mountain peaks of over 3,000 meters in elevation and many steep swift-flowing rivers.

In 1950, Japan’s first modern rock-fill dam for hydropower in the central highland, Miboro Dam (H=131m) was planned. The project faced with fierce local opposition to construction. The president of the state-owned hydropower company negotiated earnestly, politely, and in good faith with the residents of the proposed submerged area, and after more than 7 years negotiation, finally it reached a settlement on the relocation.

As a token of appreciation for the residents, a 400-year-old large cherry trees (20m high, 6m trunk) in submerged area were transplanted to the dam site. Although this transplanting work was very difficult and challenging, the cherry trees took root and, every spring, they are in full bloom, with petals still scattering into the reservoir. The story related to this transplant work has been adapted into novels and dramatic movies.

In 1963, Kurobe Dam (H=186m), the tallest arch concrete dam was constructed in a nature reserve area. All major facilities as headraces, penstocks, power plants and access roads were underground. Tateyama-Kurobe-Alpine-Route is 40 km sightseeing route by electric bus, ropeway and tunnel cable railway. You can meet spectacular sceneries and alpine fauna and flora, which attracts nearly 1 million visitors a year. (https://www.alpen-route.com/en/)

The story of the various difficulties during construction was made into a blockbuster movie starring Toshiro Mifune, a world-renowned actor in director Akira Kurosawa’s films. Several dramatic movies related to other dams have been also released. These films helps the people to understand the technical and social complexities faced during planning, construction and operation.

Experience of Yamba Dam

When a dam project is announced, there are usually strong protests. Negotiations for relocation become difficult. The Japanese Government therefore prepare laws and rules for compensation for losses, support for rebuilding livelihoods and the promotion of the welfare of relocated people. However, in the case of the Yamba Dam, it took a long time to conclude negotiations due to stiff resistance.

The Yamba Dam (H=116m) was planned in 1967 in the upper area of Tone River basin in Kanto Plain which area is 17,000 km2 includes Tokyo metropolitan area. When extreme heavy rainfall occurs in this basin, Tokyo may suffer severe flood damage. The government has strengthened the levees of Tone River and constructed several flood control dams. But the Yamba dam could not be constructed, because of hard resistance. After 42 years negotiations, it had almost reached a conclusion by 2009.

Same year, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), the governing party for nearly 50 years, lost the general election, and the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) administration began. DPJ declared the policy of “from concrete to people”, meaning “value people, not construction project in budget priorities”. The national budget was restructured, resulting the suspension of many large infrastructure projects such as new dams, new highways and new ports.

As a symbol of the “concrete to people” policy, the DPJ administration stated, “Yamba Dam project would be suspended and reviewed.” The residents who had made up their minds to accept relocation were surprised at the sudden suspension of the dam project.

From 2009, the Yamba Dam functions’ re-examination based on the current situation was started. The re-examination took more than 2 years and concluded in September 2011. The conclusion was that dam was the most advantageous in flood control, water utilization and hydropower. The policy was changed again and construction project was restarted. In December 2012 DPJ lost the general election.

The contractor was Shimizu corporation, Tekken corporation and IHI infrastructure Joint venture. The contractor then resumed construction of the dam, working day and night.

In 2019, the dam construction work was almost finished and it was time for impounding. Initial impoundment was started on 1st October 2019. During initial impoundment, extremely powerful typhoon Hagibis moved northward from the Pacific Ocean and attacked the center of main island in mid-October 2019.

Tone River basin experienced extreme large volume of rainfall. Despite initial impoundment, Yamba Dam stored the floodwaters from rainfall and prevented flood damage in the downstream areas including Tokyo metropolitan area. Reservoir water level rose 54 meters in two days, which was abnormal speed of water level rising in first impoundment. The flood which maximum inflow was approximately 2,500 m³/sec by accumulated rainfall of 347 mm, was successfully stored and its volume was 75 million m³.

Fortunately, there are not any damage on dam, abutments and reservoir.

The twists and turns of Yamba Dam project, long-time relocation negotiations, its suspension and restart were well known. The incredible fact that this dam brought flood control benefits to Tone River basin and Tokyo metropolitan area during the initial impoundment was widely reported by medias. This news provided an opportunity to the public to reaffirm the benefits of dams for recent changes in the natural environment, such as increased heavy rainfall.

(Those 2 photos are provided by Tone River Dams Integrated Management Office, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism)

Tourism around Dam

Dam tourism is popular around the large dams in Japan. Many dams allow public access to top of dam and reservoir. Prominent celebrities have claimed to be dam enthusiasts, and TV programs on dam tourism have been often broadcast. These have been very helpful in creating a positive perception of dams. Today, there are not so many objections to dam, although some environmental groups still claim to be against them. JCOLD has supported in editing a 200-page, all-color travel guidebook, “How to Walk Around the Dams”. The authors are eight private dam enthusiasts, who wrote comprehensive information on 200 prominent dams, with beautiful photographs, location maps, dam features and information of nearby attractions such as hot springs.

Oku-Tadami Dam (H=157m, http://okutadami.co.jp/English-okutadami/) has a 560MW hydropower station with one of the largest reservoirs fed by Oze marshland. Oze marshland is in nature reserve area, wetland spreads out at an altitude of 1,700 meters, with streams, small ponds, grasslands, forests and a variety of trekking routes. Skiing and snowboarding slopes are provided with powder snow in winter in the vicinity of the Dam.

Oze marshland in winter

Conclusion

In Japan there used to be negative opinions about dams due to resettlement, environmental destruction, and huge expenditures. However, the people have reaffirmed the benefits of dams, which are the ability of flood control, the ability to produce the renewable energy, and the ability of water storage for tap water. Despite various concerns, dam projects bring value to human society over the long term, 100 years or more, and it should not be discouraged by short-term thinking or opposition and current political situations, which may change in a period of time.

by Hiroyasu SUGIYAMA Former President of JCOLD (Japan Commission on Large Dams)

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The workshop was held on 1st October 2024 during the ICOLD2024 Annual Meeting.

Recording of this workshop is now available:

>> Click here <<

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Dear colleagues,
We warmly invite you to participate in the 20th jubilee edition of the International Conference
on Dam Engineering Control TKZ'2023.

`The conference will be held from 12 to 15 September 2023.

Themes of the conference

1. Safety of dams
2. Geotechnical aspects of hydraulic structures
3. Operation, maintenance and renovation of hydraulic structures
4. Modern technologies and methods for design and monitoring of hydraulic structures
5. Hydraulic transport and wet waste disposal
6. Hydroelectricity
7. Role of hydraulic structures in shaping rivers
8. Sustainable development and environmental impact of hydraulic structures
9. Water retention in urban areas 

Publication of papers

• Authors are requested to submit their papers to the organizing committee according to the above mentioned themes.
• Submission of papers is possible after registration to the conference.
• Papers will be reviewed and qualified for presentation at the conference and for publication in journals:
• Archives of Civil Engineering (in English and with supplement)
• Journal of Water and Land Development (in English and with supplement)
• Energetyka Wodna (in Polish and English)
• Gospodarka Wodna (in Polish and English)
• Inzynier Budownictwa (in Polish)
• IMGW Monographs (in Polish and English)

The conference is recommended for theorists and practitioners involved in the design, construction and operation of hydraulic structures.

The official languages of the conference are English and Polish.

The conference will be held in a hybrid format - stationary at the Diament Arsenal Palace Hotel in Chorzów (Poland) and online via a streaming platform.

Participants will have the opportunity to take part in a technical tour of the Goczalkowice reservoir.

To know more

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