We were tasked with calculating the surface area and volume of Garibaldi Lake. Then we were to figure out how much water the barrier holds back. Finally, we were to figure out how much water would escape if the barrier faulted and how much power the escaping water is equivalent to. So, here are my answers to these questions.
- What is approximately the volume and surface area of Garibaldi Lake?
SA: 9.94 km²
V: 1.19km3
The surface area was already given, so I didn’t need to calculate that. I used the measurement guide on google maps to approximate the length (5km) and width(2km) of the lake which is 10km². 10 is very close to 9.94 and is much easier to manage so I stayed with 10. The average depth of the lake is 119m which is 0.119km.By multiplying w*l*h (=V) is was able to calculate that 5*2*0.119 = 1.19km3
2. How much water does the barrier contain behind it?
1 cubic meter of water weighs 1000kg (1 metric ton) at 4 degrees Celsius. We will assume that this is the temperature of all the water in the lake even though temperature fluctuates. 1km cubed is equal to 1 billion meters cubed which is equal to 1 trillion kg of water. The volume of the lake is 1.19km cubed therefore equalling 1.19 billion meters cubed equalling 1.19 trillion kg of water. 1.19 trillion kg of water = 1.19 billion tons of water.
Therefore, the barrier is containing roughly 1.19 billion tons of water or roughly one trillion liters of water.
3. If the Barrier faulted, what do you think would happen? how much water would escape, and what kind of power is the escaping water equivalent to?
If the barrier faulted, billions of liters of water would rush down the path of the river wiping out everything in its path. At the end of the river is Squamish, which would be hit by the tidal wave. The water would form a massive wave that would travel out to sea until it finally crests and falls into the ocean. Because the barrier has a lip, not all of the water would escape so I would assume about 90-95% of the water in the lake would be unleashed down the valley. That means only about 12 billion liters of water would be left in the lake. The power of 1 trillion liters of water being released “at 1,400 meters of elevation, is 200 times the energy released by the bomb on Hiroshima.” That is enough to level everything between Garibaldi and Squamish and even change the geological form of the general area.
Either way, the barrier that holds back Garibaldi lake failing in our lifetime, is extremely low. It is almost certain that because of some reason, the barrier will release, but for now, we will be safe.
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garibaldi_Lakehttps://
www.google.ca/maps/place/Garibaldi+Lake/@49.9277132,-123.0604502,13z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x54871de627a17cc9:0x913f7329f4571920!8m2!3d49.9366437!4d-123.0272101
https://www.convertunits.com/info/km+cubedhttp://
www.squamishchief.com/news/garibaldi-lake-a-ticking-time-bomb-1.1753732
http://www.thecalculatorsite.com/conversions/common/liters-to-metric-tons.php