White Paper: Routine Instrumented and Visual Monitoring of Dams Based on Potential Failure Modes Analysis

Potential Failure Modes Analysis (PFMA) and similar processes have become a fundamental part of dam safety program efforts for many organizations in the United States and around the world. In the PFMA process, the credible threats to the safety of a dam (the potential failure modes) are identified considering all loading conditions, so that appropriate responses can be formulated to address those threats. Responses could involve dam modification, further investigation/analysis of the matter, restrictions in reservoir operation, and/or improved emergency action planning, but in many instances the response is simply development and implementation of a dam safety monitoring and surveillance program aimed at specifically ad dressing the threats identified during the PFMA effort. The goal of the PFMA process is to reduce the potential for failure of the dam, and the resulting adverse consequences due to the identified threats. Adverse consequences could involve uncontrolled reservoir re leases or dam failure, which could result in loss of life and substantial property damage. Routine dam safety surveillance and monitoring methods/programs using instrumented and visual monitoring methods are critical to the PFMA process in two basic ways: (1) to help in identifying potential dam safety threat s (the potential failure modes), and (2) to detect the possible initiation/progression of a potential failure mode so that timely actions can be taken to prevent failure. This paper will describe the relationship between the PFMA process and instrumented and visual monitoring of dams