Dam Safety Engineers Need Business Understanding With New ODSP Audit Requirements

The goal of this topic is to inform dam safety engineers on the various organizational models that may enhance their abilities to conduct Owner’s Dam Safety Program (ODSP) Audits in the future by using case studies to help understand how organizational structure, communications, and leadership improve Dam Safety culture.
Forensic Reports of dam incidents have resulted in an increased regulatory scrutiny of business operations during ODSP Audits. One example, the Independent Forensic Team (IFT) Report (France, 2018) from the Oroville Dam Spillway Incident revealed that many internal organizational challenges contributed to the spillway incident, beyond engineering and construction. Section 6.4 of Appendix K1 – Dam Safety Organization, Practice, and Culture with the Department of Water Resources (DWR) of the Oroville Dam Spillway IFT Report is particularly revealing of the challenge the IFT had understanding the organizational structure and ultimately the person responsible and accountable for dam safety.
With the IFT working with the California DWR, business-related issues arose that led regulatory agencies, especially the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), to add new requirements to ODSPs, and ultimately the audit team.
This paper discusses:
- An overview of the IFT Report from the Oroville Dam Spillway Incident findings on how the organizational structure impacted a culture of dam safety;
- A case study from a recent ODSP Audit that resulted in an organizational restructuring to enhance the Dam Safety culture within an organization responsible for 65 dams in seven states; and
- Key findings from multiple recent, less complex ODSP Audits that resulted in actionable recommendations for improved organization structure.