Advancing Earth Dam and Levee Sustainability through Monitoring Science and Condition Assessment

在这个项目中，来自科罗拉多矿业学院、密西西比州立大学和密西西比大学的研究人员正在与荷兰和法国的研究人员合作，推进土坝和堤坝（EDL）可持续性的教育和研究。这一国际合作伙伴关系将致力于多尺度监测科学的研究和教育，以使世界各地大量的土坝和堤坝有一个可持续的未来。EDLs是为发达国家和发展中国家提供防洪、淡水储存和可再生能源的关键基础设施。科学和工程界对以下方面知之甚少：（1）EDLs的内部条件，（2）它们与自然环境的相互作用，以及（3）它们将如何应对气候变化。该伙伴关系旨在通过对EDL可持续性研究和教育的综合社会-环境-经济-技术方法来提高对这三个领域的理解。这项研究是广泛的跨学科（8个学科），并将促进对以下领域的理解：（1）被动地球物理成像，以非侵入性方式评估EDLs内的条件，包括内部侵蚀;（2）航空和航天遥感，以评估EDLs和周围景观的重要表面特征;（3）堤防与周围自然环境相互作用的表征，包括自然景观的效益;（4）气候变化导致的环境破坏健康评估、损害预警和性能预测;（5）环境破坏的社会、经济和政策方法以及不同国家和文化的风险承受能力;（6）将监测系统纳入环境发展指标的成本效益，以及它如何影响关于风险承受能力的政策。研究和教育计划通过与欧洲研究人员的丰富互动，出国留学和对这些国家的研究密集型访问，可持续发展课程和跨学科研讨会，使参与研究生沉浸在EDL可持续发展教育中。研究生将攻读EDL可持续发展的未成年人，并将致力于他们的论文/学位论文的一章对EDL可持续发展的经济和社会方面。拟议研究的好处可能非常广泛。EDL可持续性是一个全球性问题，通过防洪、清洁水供应和水电影响到几乎每个人。该项目由NSF的国际科学与工程办公室（OISE）通过PIRE资助。

In this project, researchers from Colorado School of Mines, Mississippi State University and the University of Mississippi are collaborating with Dutch and French researchers to advance education and research in the sustainability of earth dams and levees (EDLs). This international partnership will pursue research and education on multi-scale monitoring science to enable a sustainable future for the vast worldwide array of earth dams and levees. EDLs are critical infrastructure that provides flood protection, fresh water storage and renewable energy to developed and developing nations. The science and engineering community knows relatively little about: (1) the internal condition of EDLs, (2) their interaction with the natural environment, and (3) how they will perform with climate change. This partnership aims to improve understanding in these 3 areas through an integrated social-environmental-economic-technical approach to EDL sustainability research and education. The research is broadly interdisciplinary (8 disciplines) and will advance understanding in the following areas: (1) passive geophysical imaging to noninvasively assess conditions within EDLs, including internal erosion; (2) airborne and space borne remote sensing for assessing important surface features of EDLs and surrounding landscape; (3) characterization of levee interaction with surrounding natural environment, including the benefit of natural landscapes; (4) EDL health assessment, early warning of damage and prediction of performance due to climate change; (5) social, economic and policy approaches to EDLs and risk tolerance across countries and cultures; (6) cost-benefit of incorporating monitoring systems into EDLs and how it influences policy on risk tolerance. The research and education plan immerses participating graduate students in EDL sustainability education through rich interactions with European researchers, study abroad and research-intensive visits to these countries, sustainability coursework and interdisciplinary seminar. Graduate students will pursue a minor in EDL sustainability and will devote a chapter of their thesis/dissertation towards economic and societal aspects of EDL sustainability. The benefits of the proposed research are potentially very broad. EDL sustainability is a global issue that affects practically everyone through flood protection, clean water supply and hydropower. The project is funded by NSF's Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) through the PIRE.