Integrating Risk into the NC State Dam Safety Program

ABSTRACT ONLY - In 2021, NC Dam Safety received grant funds through FEMA's HHPD program to complete a pilot screening level risk assessment (SLRA) of eligible dams. The SLRA was completed using FEMA's Dam Risk Tool to establish a baseline for each risk category: hydrologic, static, and seismic. The NC Dam Safety program recognized the value in maintaining and expanding the risk data beyond the initial pilot. To accomplish this NC Dam Safety needed to incorporate risk data collection into other facets of their dam safety program. To incorporate the static risk portion of the risk analysis, the NC Dam Safety dam inspection process was modified to assess severity and provide a risk score for use in the SLRA process. The dam inspection was developed using the Survey123 program to improve data management and tracking. For the hydrologic risk, additional data points will be collected as part of dam design and emergency action plan submissions. The data is then tracked in a central GIS dashboard for use by NC Dam Safety tracking and response during emergency conditions. This expansion of risk based analysis provides a better understanding of the condition of dams providing another tool for the NC Dam Safety program.