Geomembrane sealing systems for dams: ICOLD Bulletin 135

The paper presents the contents of the latest bulletin published by the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) on the subject of geomembranes as sealing systems for dams. Bulletin 135, published in 2010, is an updating and expansion of ICOLD Bulletins 38, published in 1981, and 78, published in 1991. Bulletin 135 has been prepared, under the aegis of the ICOLD Committee on Materials for Fill Dams, by the ad-hoc European Working Group for geomembranes and geosynthetics as facing materials, composed by experts from nine European countries, with external contribution from USA. Different competences were covered by the group, which included geomembrane scientists, dam designers, geomembrane systems designers, dam owners, and geomembrane specialist contractors. The bulletin is composed of 9 chapters, in total 464 pages for the English and the French versions. The paper outlines the history of the constitution of the working group, the preparation of the database on geomembrane systems in dams all over the world, discusses the topics covered by each chapter, and gives some statistics based on the database. Some case histories mentioned in the Bulletin, and recent developments, are also presented.