Lack of Dam Emergency Planning Puts Residents at Risk

I talk a lot about emergency preparedness on this blog, but I have never delved specifically into the world of dam emergency planning.  However, I just read an article that described how most dams, especially in the south, do not have any type of emergency plan associated with them.  Not only is this bad for local residents, but this reality does a disservice to utilities located near a dam as well.  It’s an important as well as an interesting issue, so I decided to take a deeper look into this problem.

Why Dam Emergency Planning is Lacking in the US

The dearth of dam emergency planning is apparently due to inadequate prioritization & funding.  That is, there are simply not enough qualified workers to conduct this type of planning, and this boils down to a lack of funding at the state level.  For example, North Carolina alone has 578 high-hazard dams with no emergency plan, and only 18 workers are employed to keep track of nearly 6,000 dams across the state. 

The backlog at the state regulatory agencies essentially ensures that there will not be any progress made in this regard anytime soon.  And there are many states in the same boat, including Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina.  Adding to the problem is that some dams are privately-owned, which means they are not subject to state regulations.

So, what exactly does dam emergency planning entail?  At a minimum, an adequate dam emergency plan should contain the following:

• Descriptions and hazard ratings of all dams in the local area.
• The names and addresses of local property owners so they can be notified and/or evacuated if disaster strikes.
• A local road map, color coded to show roads that are subject to flooding and could become impassable. 
• Steps that should be taken based on the severity of the emergency.
• A contact list of local and state emergency personnel.

This lack of dam emergency planning should be highly concerning to nearby utilities, because a dam that fails would likely damage or even wash away utility infrastructure, and make it difficulty if not impossible to restore services in a timely fashion.  For this reason, utility companies located near dams should incorporate a dam emergency scenario into their own plans, and work with state officials to improve the dam emergency planning in their area.