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Tennessee Valley Authority Hydroelectric Dam Evaluation Program

To be one of the nation¡¯s leading providers of low cost, cleaner energy. That¡¯s the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) vision. To achieve that vision, they need to increase efficiency and generating capacity, and also support economic growth and job creation.

Unit 2 at the Watts Bar Nuclear Power Plant in Tennessee helped move that process along. It added more than 1,100 megawatts of power to their generating portfolio¡ªenough to power more than half a million homes.

Due to the increased worldwide focus on how flooding affects nuclear facilities, we helped TVA perform stability analyses and evaluations of dams that control the flood waters that could affect the plant. Located in Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia, the five earthen embankment hydroelectric dams (Chatuge, Douglas, Nottely, South Holston, and Watauga) are up to 330 feet tall and 3,900 feet long.

?We characterized subsurface conditions and evaluated the performance of each dam under static, seismic, and flood elevation conditions. Making sure that TVA¡¯s energy production proves resilient against disasters. We also installed instrumentation to support TVA¡¯s dam safety monitoring program.