National Dam Safety Program Publications
The National Dam Safety Program provides a variety of publications, including:
- Research Needs Workshop Reports
- Technical Manuals, Guides and Reports
- Technical Advisories
- Safety Series Fact Sheets
- Response and Recovery (R&R) Dam Response Operations Matrices
- Dam Safety & Risk MAP/Flood Mapping Studies Fact Sheet Series
- DSS-WISE Fact Sheets
- FEMA P-1015, Technical Manual: Overtopping Protection for Dams (ZIP, 410MB)
Search for Dam Safety Publications
Search for documents below, or view our pages on Federal Guidelines, National Dam Safety Program Information, Resources for the General Public, or Resources for States.
You can order publications from the FEMA Distribution Center.
Challenges of Messaging: Response Group, Perceived Risk, Dilution of Signs. Message Content: Signal Words, Active Verbs, Identifying Risk. Simplicity of Signage: Use few words, Eliminate redundancy, Avoid distraction. Language: Translate signage, Use pictograms, Use QR codes.
These best practices have been developed to address the need to accurately and consistently warn against the hazardous conditions resulting from the general operation of dam facilities nationally.
The Dam Safety Warning Signs Best Practices document is a compilation of existing leading practices from industry leaders on the development, installation and assessment of safety warning signs at and around dams. For errors and suggestions, please contact the Dam Safety team. We will include an errata sheet and reviewed suggestions for improvement. We will update the errata sheet annually.
Decision Support System for Water Infrastructure Security Human Consequence Module (DSS-WISETM HCOM) is an analytical module for automated assessment of the human consequences of dam-break floods. The National Center for Computational Hydroscience and Engineering (NCCHE) and the University of Mississippi developed the module with funding provided by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) through a contract with Argonne National Laboratory.
As the lead Federal agency for the National Dam Safety Program (NDSP), FEMA is responsible for coordinating efforts to secure the safety of dams throughout the United States. The program makes Federal funds available to the States, which are primarily responsible for protecting the public from dam failures of non-Federal dams, and pursuing initiatives that enhance the safety of dams posing the greatest risk to people and property.
In 2020, notable accomplishments included the development of nine new updated guidance or tools, training of over 516 dam safety professionals, and total of 26 awardees for the Rehabilitation of High Hazard Potential Dam Grant.
This powerpoint summarizes the eligibility requirements for the 2021 Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Rehabilitation of High Hazard Potential Dams Grant Program.