Dam safety is about managing dams to minimise risks to life, property, essential services and the environment.
On this page:
Our role
The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) helps support the safe management of dams across Victoria. Dam safety is important because dams can affect people, homes, businesses, essential services and the environment. In Victoria, dam owners are responsible for operating and maintaining their dams safely.
DEECA supports this through policy, oversight and emergency preparedness arrangements. Victoria’s dam safety framework is supported by legislation, including the Water Act 1989 (Vic) and the Water Industry Act 1994 (Vic) Statement of Obligations (General), which set out responsibilities for dam safety management and reporting.
Our role is to help provide confidence to government and the community that dam safety risks to people, property and the environment are being identified, managed and reduced as "so far as is reasonably practicable" (SFAIRP).
DEECA manages its role in dam safety through three pillars:
Risk: Identify significant dam safety risks and support arrangements to manage them, especially where there may be consequences for people, property or the environment.
Policy: Develop and maintain dam safety policy, guidance and frameworks that support consistent and effective dam safety management across Victoria.
Assurance: Assure DEECA, the Minister for Water and the community via the oversight of dam safety provisions in the Water Act, the Statement of Obligations for water corporations and appropriate agreements via continual improvement associated with the dam safety goal.
DEECA supports emergency preparedness and response arrangements for dam safety incidents.
Our role as Control Agency under the State Emergency Management Plan and Dam Safety Response Plan includes:
coordinating access to technical advice and specialist capability during serious emergency events
helping arrange access to suitably qualified technical experts to assess dam safety conditions during escalated incidents
contributing to incident response planning and review.
DEECA also:
participates in emergency exercises and post-incident reviews to support continuous improvement
maintains dam inundation mapping in the Victorian Government’s flood intelligence platform (FloodZoom) for large dams.
DEECA works with a range of partners to support dam safety across Victoria. This includes:
contributing to dam safety response and operational planning
working with water corporations and industry to support coordinated emergency arrangements
maintaining dam safety forums and professional networks
consulting with internal and external stakeholders to inform strategic advice on dam safety.
DEECA:
develops dam safety policy, regulatory frameworks and guidance
supports oversight of dam safety responsibilities under the Water Act 1989 and the Statement of Obligations for water corporations
identifies state-significant dam safety risks and works with stakeholders to support risk management by dam owners
coordinates arrangements for escalated responses to dam safety incidents to help reduce impacts on communities, property and the environment
provides advice to government on Victoria’s dam safety framework, incidents and emerging risks.
DEECA does not:
advise on, design, or approve dam works
carry out compliance or enforcement activity for public or private dams
manage risk management plans or escalated response activities for mining and quarrying tailings and slimes dams, which are managed by Resources Victoria under the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990 (Vic).
DEECA is committed to working with partners across government and industry to support strong dam safety arrangements that help protect Victorian communities, infrastructure and the environment.
Dam owners are responsible for the safety of their dams. They are required to implement certain controls, such as safety management programs, monitoring and operational measures.
The Department provides policy, guidelines and oversight to dam owners for the safety of dams in Victoria.
A works license may be required for construction, alteration, operation, removal or decommissioning of a dam.
A private dam is subject to a works licence if it is:
on a waterway
5 metres or higher and 50 megalitres capacity or larger
10 metres or higher and 20 megalitres capacity or larger
15 metres or higher, regardless of capacity.
Take and use licences
Dams that are built and used for domestic and stock purposes do not require a take and use licence.
A take and use/surface water licence is needed for all dams used for irrigation or commercial purposes, regardless of their location or size. If you intend to take and use water from a dam for any purpose other than domestic and stock use, you must obtain a take and use/surface water licence.
You should obtain a water licence before building a new dam, as your licence conditions may need your dam to include particular works to be incorporated into the dam’s construction.
Contact your Licensing Authority to discuss water entitlement matters, including availability, trading and metering of water for your circumstances.
Dam safety risks
It is important for dam owners to look after their dams and monitor risks.
Victoria faces many risks including bushfires, floods, severe storms and drought, made worse by the effects of climate change. These risks can pose a threat to dam safety.
Dam owners and managers can implement engineering controls and safety management systems to reduce the risk of failure.
Australia has a good dam safety record. The likelihood of a major dam failure happening is very low. However, the history of serious dam failures around the world tells us how important it is to maintain strong dam safety management programs.
How owners manage their dams
The more damage a dam could cause if it were to fail, the more effort a dam owner needs to put into monitoring it.
Larger dams have safety plans which include:
regular inspections by experienced and qualified people
installation of monitoring instruments at dam sites
operations and maintenance manuals
dam safety emergency plans.
These actions allow dam owners to collect information to identify changes in their dam that may present a risk.
The operations and maintenance manuals dam owners prepare have instructions on how to operate the dam under many different conditions, such as during a large flood.
In Victoria, some of our older dams were built as far back as the 1860s. Although these dams were constructed to the best standards of the day, design standards have improved over time as we gain better knowledge on storms, earthquakes and construction techniques.
As standards improve, dam owners assess their dams for risks and identify work that can be done to improve safety.
Emergency response
All large dams, or dams with the potential to cause significant damage if they fail, need to have a Dam Safety Emergency Plan (DSEP). This plan guides the dam owner's response to an emergency situation at the dam. Testing the plan with emergency services and other relevant stakeholders builds trust and an understanding of everyone's responsibilities.
The State Emergency Management Plan assigns roles to emergency service organisations and other agencies for types of incidents.
The dam safety response plan outlines the responsibilities for DEECA, emergency services, and dam owners to prepare for and respond to dam safety incidents. It also provides guidance on the response to downstream flooding from dams.
If you live close to a large dam, it is likely that your local water corporation will know who owns it and can let you know who to speak to for more information.
If you live near a private dam, the local water corporation who issues licences can provide some information about it.
