US Army Corps of Engineers
Beaver Dam, Arkansas
The USACE Dam Safety Program
Chief Joseph Dam, Washington
The USACE Dam Safety Program
RISK-INFORMED DAM SAFETY PROGRAM
Dams are integral to communities’ ood risk
management across the nation. The U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) operates
and maintains more than 700 dams that
provide signicant benets and reduce the
impact of ooding on people, businesses,
critical infrastructure and the environment.
Our Dam Safety Program exists to assess a
dam’s condition, communicate what we know
and help manage any risks associated with
the dam. Reducing risk to life is top priority
and the core of the program.
Flooding will happen; dams do not eliminate
ood risk; their condition can change; and
taking action before a ood happens will save
lives and property.
Approximately 95% of
USACE dams are more
than 30 years old and more
than half are more than 50
years old.
Dam Safety Risks
Risk is the likelihood an event such as large
rainfall or earthquake will occur, how the dam
performs, and the consequences of failure,
with loss of life the paramount concern. We
cannot completely eliminate risk, but we can
reduce and manage risk.
USACE takes seriously its role in prioritizing
safety activities, rehabilitating its dams, and
working with local emergency managers and
communities to make sure its dams provide
their intended benets while minimizing risk.
Living with dams requires shared responsibility
among federal, state, local, tribal and private
agencies to come up with innovative solutions
to minimize ood risk. USACE believes
informed and engaged communities who
know their risk, their role and options can take
appropriate action to reduce their ood risk.
For more information about the USACE
dam safety program, please visit:
http://www.usace.army.mil/Missions/
CivilWorks/DamSafetyProgram
Contact Information
hq-publicaffairs@usace.army.mil or
hq-damsafety@usace.army.mil
On the cover:
(top) Herbert Hoover Dike, Florida
(bottom) Richard B. Russell Dam, South
Carolina
EP 360-1-31 | Feb 2016