EBMUD recently studied the seismic safety of Chabot Dam. The study, performed by earthquake safety experts, was completed in October 2005 and found the dam to be strong and in sound condition. The report concluded that in a major earthquake the dam could slump up to four feet; this level of settlement does not pose a flood risk to downstream residents as the water level of Chabot Reservoir is 23 feet below the top of the dam.

The report also found that a major earthquake could pose a risk of cracking at the top of the dam that could lead to internal erosion. EBMUD is evaluating the report. Any action taken by EBMUD will be performed in consultation with the California Division of Safety of Dams.

The geotechnical report is available below as a PDF file that can be viewed and printed through Adobe Acrobat Reader 6.0, a free software.   You may experience problems if you attempt to open these files using an older version of Acrobat Reader.

Dam Study Vol.1 (17MB)
Dam Study Vol. 2 (28MB)