Aquaculture Engineering

Water control structures or Gates - Definition

Unit 11 - Water distribution and control structures

Water control structures or Gates

Definition
Gates are part of water distribution system in an aqua cultural farm and are installed to control the water flow. Following are the basic requirements of a gate.

• It should be of sufficient capacity to handle the required flow of water during pond draining and filling.
• It should be properly located and carefully constructed taking into the account the pond bottom level and channel bed level for an efficient flow of the water and complete drainage as and when required.
• It should be made of a material which can withstand the saline action and where fouling action is minimum.
• Self weight of the gate as far as possible should be lighter but not sacrificing the structural requirements. It should require minimum additional foundation depending upon the soil characteristics and should be economical and easy to construct.
• It should be firmly situated at the bottom of pond or channel and linked with the dikes to prevent seepage and possible collapse.
• It should be easy to operate and maintain, and should have proper provision for filtering predatory fishes, their eggs and other organism