Comprehensive hazard assessment and protection of debris flows along Jinsha River close to the Wudongde dam site in China

The occurrence of debris flows close to a hydropower dam not only threatens human lives and structures, but also affects the stability of the dam. Therefore, hazard assessment and protection of debris flows close to the dam are particular and important. In this paper, 3 S (Geographic Information System, Global Positioning System, and Remote Sensing) technologies are applied to determine the characteristics of debris flows. Characteristics that can affect debris flow assessment are classified and extracted. Based on the determined characteristics, the extension theory, which is used for solving incompatibility and contradiction problems, is applied to hazard assessment. In this paper, the idea of self-protection is proposed for debris flow gully protection. The prevention procedures are detailed, including filling of lower reaches and design of drainage works. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2011