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A deep knowledge of the site geology is fundamental to understanding risk, and an advanced academic style desk study is critically important as one of the first tasks to be undertaken.
The study typically looks at the macro to micro picture and includes an understanding of the regional and site tectonic history, the relationships between the different rock units in time and space, the stress history of the rocks, the fabric or mineralogy of the rocks, and other site specific geological features such as the presence of igneous intrusions or the range and influence of a metamorphic aureole.
The fundamental principle that helps anticipate and plan to mitigate ground risks for pumped hydro projects is the early development of a predictive ground model that we call a conceptual engineering geology model.
Engineering geology models are constructed from a combination of different data sources, including sources from academia or publicly available mineral surveys, from studies of aerial photographs and from site visits and mapping expeditions.
The output is typically a 3D digital model that can be used for early design, but also as a communication tool to stakeholders to explain the construction process.
The conceptual EGM also becomes a tool to predict where hazards and risks are likely to occur, and how they may be mitigated. As the project progresses and site specific geotechnical investigation data becomes available, the EGM is updated and refined to an observational model.
This ongoing refinement of the expected geological and geotechnical conditions, which may include a number of phases of investigation, provides greater certainty of the actual conditions and therefore reduces project risk.
One of the most important factors in developing EGMs for pumped hydro projects, is the experience and expertise of the team compiling it. Pumped hydro projects are a big undertaking, so it's important to get insights from a range of experienced practitioners to make sure the predicted geological model is as accurate as it can be.
Technical Director, Ground & Underground Engineering
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