In mid-2013, Delft-FEWS, the Deltares hydrological forecasting system, will be operational on the Salto Grande dam on the Uruguay/Argentina border.
During the last fortnight, two hydrologists from the Comisión Técnica Mixta de Salto Grande (CTM), the organisation that manages the dam, were at Deltares in Delft to train with the system.
CTM will be using Delft-FEWS to improve the management of the dam.
Eduardo Zamanillo stated: ‘ Our old software couldn’t handle the amount of data available these days. So we decided to take a look at other systems. Delft-FEWS quickly emerged as an interesting option. It is used in situations similar to ours and the users are enthusiastic. We were impressed by the amount of data it can process and the speed of the system. That capacity is unmatched anywhere else. We got in touch with Deltares for the first time in 2010. At the moment, we’re working on configuring the Rio Uruguay data for Delft-FEWS. From mid-2013 onwards, we will be able to monitor developments in the water system in the vicinity of the dam on a day-to-day basis and decide what action needs to be taken.’
The Salto Grande dam is in the Rio Uruguay, which starts in Brazil and forms the natural border between Uruguay and Argentina. The dam is important for both countries, supplying Uruguay and Argentina with hydro-electric energy.
The catchment of the Rio Uruguay is extremely large (370,000 km2) and complex. Together with the Rio Paraná, the Rio Uruguay ultimately forms the Rio de la Plata, the world’s broadest river with a width of 220 km.
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Press Release, October 16, 2012