Dam Safety in British Columbia - Who is Responsible?
Anyox Dam
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Dams In British Columbia
There are approximately 1985 dams operating in the province. Of these, 287 dams have been classified as high or very high hazard (loss of life may occur should the dam fail). These dams range in purpose from hydro electric to domestic supply and range in size from small privately-owned irrigation dams to B.C. Hydro's 242 metre high Mica Dam.
Due to the topography of British Columbia, many dams have been constructed high in the mountains, often above populated corridors containing highways, railways, residential dwellings and/or communities. These dams, even ones impounding small reservoirs, can cause severe damage to the environment and/or to property and may result in the loss of life should they fail.
Historic Dam Failures in B.C.
There have been some dam failures that have caused serious damage in British Columbia from the turn of the century to as recently as May 1995. The following are a few examples:
- In 1912 a small water supply dam servicing the coal shipping port of Union Bay on Vancouver Island failed killing one man and causing extensive damage to property and the coal loading port facilities
- In 1941 a 10 metre high dam located above the town of Penticton failed resulting in severe damage to the downstream area. If the dam failed with today's population living below, economic and environmental damage would be extensive and the probability of loss of life would be high.
- In May 1995, a 6 metre high earth-filled irrigation dam (
 63kb) failed causing approximately half a million dollars damage. The sudden release of storage killed 48 head of cattle, destroyed 1.5 km of a public road, damaged 100 acres of hay field and introduced 700,000 cubic metres of material into the Quesnel River.
Voght Creek Dam failure, 1992
Dam Safety Responsibilities
In all cases, the dam owners are clearly responsible for the safe operation and maintenance of their dams. English common law, on which our legal system is based, considers dams to be "inherently dangerous structures", and those who own dams are liable for any damages that are caused by the dam.
Under the provincial Water Act, it is the responsibility of the dam owner to ensure that their dam and appurtenant works are inspected, operated safely and maintained adequately to prevent the damaging of land, works, trees or other property from a dam breach.
The Dam Safety Regulation was passed into law as Regulation 44/2000 under the Water Act effective February 11, 2000. The objective of the Regulation is to mitigate loss of life and damage to property and the environment from a dam breach by requiring dam owners to inspect their own dams, undertake proper maintenance on them, and ensure that these dams meet ongoing engineering standards.
Provincial Dam Safety Program
The provincial Dam Safety Program was instituted by the Comptroller of Water Rights in 1967 as an aid to dam owners in ensuring that their structures are designed, constructed and maintained according to acceptable standards for public safety.
The Provincial Dam Safety Program encompasses two components, regional offices and headquarters. Dam Safety Officers in the Regional offices ( 65 kb) are responsible for monitoring and auditing dams that are less than 9 metres in height. The remaining 180 larger dams are the responsibility of the Dam Safety Officers in Victoria.
In most cases smaller dams do not pose as great a hazard as larger dams. However, it is important to note that the probability of smaller dams failing can be much higher due to the lack of owner resources and appreciation of the severe consequences of a dam failure. Therefore, the Provincial Dam Safety Program places a high priority on the safety of all dams in British Columbia.
Safe Dams
Three components are required for a safe dam:
- competent design, using knowledge from many engineering fields such as geotechnical, hydraulic, seismic and geological;
- competent construction, using knowledge of construction materials and construction techniques;
- competent dam operation, which requires the dam owner to thoroughly understand and execute a competent dam operation, maintenance and surveillance program.
These components involve many decisions and a wide knowledge base and, depending on the complexity of the dam, may involve the advice of professionals with dam safety experience from varying disciplines of dam safety engineering.
References
To learn more about dam safety, contact the Dam Safety Officer ( 65kb) at your local Water Stewardship office for information on the following reference material:
Damage caused by Cannon Creek Dam failure, May 1995.
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Public Safety
For information about public safety, contact the Provincial Emergency Program (PEP)
Water Stewardship Regional offices are located in various communities.
This page, and all contents, are Copyright(C)1995, updated 2000, 2002, 2010. Province of British Columbia, Ministry of Environment, Water Management. | 
