A new report published by the UK Government last week has the potential to change the way we think about dam and reservoir safety in the UK.
Prof David Balmforth’s independent review of reservoir safety was commissioned by Defra after the serious ‘near miss’ at Toddbrook reservoir in 2019 (pictured). The report makes a series of recommendations that aim to strengthen and modernise the industry. The report gives us an opportunity to explore developing a new risk-based approach to dam safety, and emphasises the need for owners, engineers, the regulator and Government to work together. It calls for owners to take their responsibilities seriously, and ensure their reservoirs are proactively managed and maintained to minimise the risk of failure. We were delighted to see DAMSAT cited as a remote monitoring solution that can help dam owners to comply with the report’s recommendations.
The full Independent Reservoir Safety Review Report by Professor David Balmforth is available from the gov.uk website.