A case of complex geotechnical conditions for a water treatment facility

Waste water treatment facility of Vukovar city with capacity for 42000 inhabitants is planned to be built on Danube right riverbank, downstream from Vukovar city. Due to a large area required for facility buildings and site topography, a plateau of 40000 m2 and total 270000 m3 needs to be built with a large part laying behind the sand filled embankment in Danube riverbed. Loess deposits near Danube riverbank are vertically rising up to 30 m from water level and a very narrow strip of dry land between river and loess slopes limits the possibilities for positioning the plateau for the facility, hence this kind of spreading bank to the river side was the only possible solution. The complex engineering problem demanded extensive investigation works and a sensitive analysis of stability, settlements and liquefaction susceptibility, as well as a strict and comprehensive control of sand embankment properties. Some of the specific aspects of design solution related to geotechnical analyses of the revetment and the plateau, formed for positioning the facility buildings, are presented in this paper.