Sedimentation Management for Multi-Purpose Reservoirs: A Federal Perspective

Tim Randle

Paul Boyd
By Dr. Tim Randle, Bureau of Reclamation, and Dr. Paul Boyd, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
The Federal government owns 3,381 dams, representing 3.7 percent of the 90,580 dams listed in the U.S. National Inventory of Dams. Many of these dams are among the largest in the country and provide multi-purpose benefits for tens of millions of Americans. Though these multi-purpose dams are functioning as planned by trapping sediments supplied from the upstream watershed, they do disrupt the natural sediment continuity of river systems and very few were designed with sustainable reservoir sediment management in mind. Typically, Federal reservoirs were designed with a sediment design life of 50 or 100 years (the point at which sediment reaches the outlet level). At present, most federal multi-purpose dams are in the latter stages or have exceeded their sediment design life and many are considering more sustainable reservoir sediment management for the future.
In this talk, Dr. Randle and Dr. Boyd will discuss sustainable reservoir sedimentation management in multi-purpose dams, with a perspective from federal reservoirs. Dr. Randle and Dr. Boyd will discuss sedimentation issues facing federal dams, as well as current and future federal activities for achieving sustainable reservoir sediment management for the benefit of future generations.
Dr. Tim Randle, P.E., is a Supervisory Civil Engineer (Hydraulics) and Manager of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's Sedimentation and River Hydraulics Group.  He received his B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Utah in 1981 and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Civil Engineer from the University of Colorado in 2004 and 2014. Dr. Randle has served the Bureau of Reclamation for 38 years, developing several computer models and conducted geomorphic and hydraulic studies of many rivers throughout the western United States. In 1997, he was honored as Reclamation’s “Engineer of the Year” and named one of the top ten Federal Engineers by the National Society of Professional Engineers. In 2016, he received the Distinguished Service Award from the U.S. Department of the Interior.Dr. Randle is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers, U.S. Society on Dams, and a Diplomate, Water Resources Engineer for the American Academy of Water Resources Engineers. He is past Chair of the Subcommittee on Sedimentation and Chairs the National Reservoir Sedimentation and Sustainability Team.
Dr. Boyd has been with the US Army Corps of Engineers for 16 years. He began his career working on river management and restoration projects and has transitioned to focusing on reservoir sedimentation, management, and sustainability problems. He currently works on advancing numerical modeling of reservoirs, promoting the need for reservoir sustainability, and manages sediment technical teams for international engagements in multiple Southeast Asia countries. Dr. Boyd represents the US Army Corps of Engineers on the ACWI Subcommittee on Sedimentation and is a member the National Reservoir Sedimentation and Sustainability Team.
This event is part of a series of webinars on reservoir sedimentation, sponsored in part by the CIRES Education & Outreach group and the CIRES Western Water Assessment group, focused on reservoir sedimentation and sustainability. Organizers are part of the Subcommittee on Sedimentation’s National Reservoir Sedimentation and Sustainability Team, presenting sustainable solutions to reservoir sediment management.
The full list of upcoming and recorded webinars as well as professional development hour certificates can be found at this link: Announcing the Reservoir Sedimentation Management Webinar Series.