2024 – Putting Together the Puzzle of Dam Consequence Assessments

Maria McCrann, Michael Yule

Currently dam consequence assessments require putting together many pieces of a puzzle. Information is often scattered and fragmented. The ANCOLD guidelines are a very good place to start, however, each complementary guide has value that can be used for more detailed information and procedures.

It is recognised that circumstances vary enormously from dam to dam and different administrative frameworks apply in each state. Some states have specific dam legislation, while others rely on more general provisions.

In order to streamline the process of undertaking a dam consequence assessment and help to avoid missing parts of the assessment process or regulations we propose to create a resource that links each guideline depending on the region and provides a tool for decision making that combines the guidelines to join those scattered and fragmented sources of information.

Having an overarching guide that refers and links to other guidelines based on state and regulations will help to avoid missing parts of the assessment process or regulations. It is important for the industry to have a common response to consequence assessments no matter the region.