Civil Engineering Bulletin: News, forums, jobs, software, freelance and ebooks - Environmental, Engineering Groups Question Dam Safety

VANDALIA, Ohio -- In the aftermath of the Minneapolis bridge collapse last summer, the safety of the nation's infrastructure came under new scrutiny. The American Society of Civil Engineers rated bridges nationwide as a "C", but gave dams a lower ranking of "D.
"The group said many aging dams, with a large percentage of them privately owned, pose a threat to public safety.
Just over a year ago, a 117-year-old dam burst in Hawaii, killing seven people.
Ohio has 1,600 dams that are large enough to be inspected by the state.
Rodney Tornes, chief of dam safety with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said dams are inspected once every five years.
Some dams in the state enforcement program are inspected more often.
"There are a lot of dams around the state that are class-one, high-hazard structures that have people downstream. That's the reason we exist, to protect those people to make sure those dams are designed properly and maintained properly," Tornes said.
The Miami Valley has several large dams built for a combination of flood control and recreation.
One of them is at the C.J. Brown reservoir in Springfield.Larry Davis, who works at the Boathouse Bait Shop across the street from the dam, said he thinks it is safe.
"The safety of the surrounding are is just as important and if this thing goes there's going to be a lot of water to hit Springfield," Davis said.
The Springfield dam was completed in 1974 and in good shape.Many others are much older.
The Taylorsville Dam and four others were built in the 1920s, following the disastrous 1913 flood.
The dams were built and are maintained by the Miami Conservancy District.
Kurt Rinehart, Conservancy District chief engineer, said visible cracks in the concrete around the dam are surface cracks and are scheduled to be repaired. Otherwise, Rinehart said, all five dams are structurally sound.
The American Society of Civil Engineers is not the only group trying to raise awareness of dam safety problems.
The Washington, D.C.-based group American Rivers has also joined the effort.Andrew Fahlund, of American Rivers, said the threat to communities from high hazard dams is great.
He said 442 dams in Ohio are consider to be high hazard, meaning if they fail there would be loss of life downstream.
State regulators currently have 15 dams, including one in Clermont County, in the enforcement program. Changes have been ordered to improve safety, including increased efforts to control erosion.
The call for improved dam safety has not fallen on deaf ears.A new dam safety initiative in Washington has already passed the U.S. House and is currently pending before the Senate.
Source : whiotv.com