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dam-l cost of dam safety [fwd]



article on cost of dam safety.

cheers!
-cdm

Forwarded message:
From owner-irn-safrica@igc.org  Mon Mar  9 22:39:19 1998
From: owner-irn-safrica@igc.org
Date: Mon, 9 Mar 1998 17:23:17 -0800 (PST)
Message-Id: <199803100123.RAA25796@igc7.igc.org>
>>>CONTACT: Martin McCann, National Performance of Dams Program, Department of
To: "undisclosed-recipients:;"@lox.sandelman.ottawa.on.ca

>>>Civil and Environmental Engineering (650 )723-9323;. Fax: 650 723-8398;
>>>e-mail: npdp@ce.stanford.edu

>>>http://www.businesswire.com)
>>>3/5/98

Date: Mon, 9 Mar 1998 16:53:59 -0800
From: lori@irn.org (Lori Pottinger)
Subject: Dam safety-LS
>
>>>Cost of Keeping Nation's Dams Safe Could Top $1 Billion Annually
>>> 03:20 p.m Mar 05, 1998 Eastern
>>>
>>> STANFORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 5, 1998--A study released today
>>>significantly underestimates the price tag for maintaining the safety of
>>>the nation's 95,000 dams, a Stanford professor suggests.
>>>
>>>In its 1998 report card on the nation's infrastructure, the American
>>>Society of CivilEngineers (ASCE) estimates that it will take $1 billion to
>>>rehabilitate the 2,100 dams that have been identified as unsafe.
>>>
>>>Fixing unsafe dams, however, is only part of the nation's dam safety
>>>problem,according to Martin McCann, consulting professor of civil and
>>>environmental engineering at Stanford and director of theNational
>>>Performance of Dams Program (NPDP).
>>>
>>>The real cost for effectively managing the risks that dams represent, so
>>>that people can continue to realize the benefits that they provide, is
>>>about $1 billion per year for the next 20 years, he says.
>>>
>>>Cost factors not being considered include:
>>>
>>>-- Ongoing maintenance and repair for existing dams to ensure that they do
>>>not become unsafe;
>>>-- Implementation of emergency action plans at "high and significant
>>>hazard" dams; and
>>>-- Development and maintenance of fully staffed state and federal dam
>>>safety programs to periodically inspect dams, review and approve of dam
>>>designs, inspect construction activities, and oversee emergency operations.
>>>
>>>
>>>Another cost that is generally overlooked is dam failures, including
>>>fatalities and injuries; property damage; emergency operations and clean-up
>>>costs; loss of dam infrastructure and the revenue it generates,
>>>environmental impact, and economic impact on nearby communities.
>>>
>>>The costs of dam failures can be significant. The 1976 failure of the Teton
>>>Dam resulted in damages of $900 million and 11 fatalities. The failure of
>>>Lawn Lake Dam, a small earth embankment, in July 1982 produced $35 million
>>>in damages and three fatalities. In 1996, the failure of a small dam in New
>>>Hampshire resulted in one death and $5.5 million in damages.
>>>
>>>"There is no free lunch. Either we make the investments required to keep
>>>our nation's dams safe, or we will pay the price in dam failures," said
>>>McCann. By 2020, more than 85 percent of our dams will be more than 50
>>>years old, generally considered to be the design life of a dam."
>>>
>>>Dam Infrastructure
>>>
>>>More than 95 percent of the dams in the United States are privately owned
>>>and regulated by state dam safety agencies. Dams provide a range of
>>>benefits, including domestic water supply, hydroelectric power, flood
>>>protection, recreation, and agricultural and industrial water supply.
>>>However, dams also pose a substantial economic and societal risk. As a
>>>result, it is a national imperative that the risks associated with dams and
>>>their operation be understood and that the safety of dams be properly
>>>managed, McCann said.
>>>
>>>Approximately two-thirds of all dam failures are caused by floods. The
>>>second leading cause of dam failure is excessive leakage and internal
>>>erosion, which accounts for 19 percent. After floods and seepage and
>>>piping, no single cause contributes greater than 4 percent to the total,
>>>and the majority range from 0.1 to 2 percent. Additional causes of failure
>>>include animal burrows; concrete deterioration; deterioration and failure
>>>of structures and equipment required to release excess water during floods
>>>or emergencies; earthquakes; embankment instability; foundation problems;
>>>ice pressure, settling; structural failure; and wave action. Dam
>>>Performance
>>>
>>>Working with the Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO), the
>>>Federal Emergency Management Agency and other federal agencies, the
>>>National Performance of Dams Program (NPDP) has set up a process for
>>>gathering information on the performance of dams in the United States.
>>>Since the program officially began in September 1994, information on 1,814
>>>dam incidents has been reported to the NPDP.
>>>
>>>A dam incident is an event that involves the safety of a dam and provides
>>>insight into its structural and operational integrity. Incidents include
>>>the uncontrolled release of the reservoir downstream and safety-related
>>>findings such as excessive deterioration, excessive seepage, and damaged or
>>>inoperable outlet works.
>>>
>>>Currently, the program is working with the ASDSO to make the process of
>>>reporting dam incidents an ongoing part of state dam safety practice. Based
>>>on current trends, it is estimated that as many as 1,000 safety-related dam
>>>incidents occur annually at the 95,000 dams regulated by the states.
>>>
>>>The NPDP currently has on record 1,448 dam failures and more than 4,000 dam
>>>incidents that occurred in the United States in the past 150 years. Of
>>>these, at least 73 have resulted in fatalities, including 2,209 deaths from
>>>the 1889 Johnstown Flood and the failure of South Fork Dam. Since 1972, the
>>>year of the Buffalo Creek Dam failure that killed 125 people, there have
>>>been 724 known failures. In the last five years, there have 380 dam
>>>failures. Due to inconsistency in reporting practices that continue today,
>>>it is likely that the actual number of dam failures is greater.
>>>
>>>The National Performance of Dams Program
>>>
>>>NPDP, which is located at Stanford University, is working with national dam
>>>safety leaders to gather and evaluate information on the performance and
>>>safety of dams in the United States. Its objectives are to retrieve,
>>>archive and disseminate information on the performance of dams that will
>>>support efforts to improve dam safety, dam design and rehabilitation and
>>>the implementation of effective public policy. It is an integral part of
>>>the National Dam Safety Program that was signed into law in 1996.
>>>
>>>Note To Editors: This release is available on the World Wide Web at:
To: irn-safrica@igc.apc.org
X-Sender: lori@pop.igc.apc.org

=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*
      Lori Pottinger, Director, Southern Africa Program,
           International Rivers Network
              1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
                  Tel. (510) 848 1155   Fax (510) 848 1008
                        http://www.irn.org
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