A Detailed Inspection is defined as "All studies, investigations, and analyses necessary to evaluate conclusively the structural safety and hydraulic capacity of a dam or reservoir and appurtenant works. This inspection includes, but is not limited to, soil analyses, concrete or earth stability analyses, materials testing, foundation explorations, and hydrologic analyses including basin studies and flood potential.”   

Dam owners and operators should understand that this has the potential to be a very complex and expensive undertaking. Identifying and fully understanding every deficiency that exists with a dam can require greater effort than designing a completely new dam from scratch. The effort involved in performing Detailed Inspections on dams that were constructed before 1977-1978, when the Dams and Reservoirs Safety Act was passed and regulations enacted, can be especially time and resource demanding. For dams in this category, scant records exist to document the design details and construction methods associated with these dams, and when these records are lacking or inconclusive, if any exist at all, additional engineering services may be required.  

Following completion of the Detailed Inspection, the engineer’s findings of deficiencies and recommendations for correction must be compiled into a report.  Then, once the deficiencies are identified and clearly understood, they must be addressed.  Deficiencies can be addressed in one of two ways:   

1) Repair or alter the dam to eliminate the deficiencies, or  

2) Remove the dam.   

Increased difficulty derives from the fact that a single engineer is unlikely capable of performing a Detailed Inspection alone, and it is more likely that a team of engineers with different areas of expertise (e.g., hydrology and hydraulics, geotechnical engineering, structural engineering) will be needed.  This may mean a consulting engineer must hire sub-consultants; or means a multi-disciplinary engineering firm is required. 

A Detailed Inspection can be performed voluntarily - either when a dam owner/operator desires or upon request or suggestion by SCDES following a Preliminary Inspection. However, a Detailed Inspection can also be required by SCDES through issuance of an Inspection and Repair Order (IRO).  If an IRO has been issued, then the dam owner/operator has a legal requirement to hire a licensed Professional Engineer registered in SC to perform the Detailed Inspection, create a report of said Detailed Inspection, and then prepare a permit application for repair OR removal of the dam.   

A dam owner can contest the issuance of an IRO to the SC Administrative Law Court (ALC), but if the IRO is not appealed or if the ALC (and potentially subsequent appellant courts) rules in favor of the Department following hearing, then the IRO is not optional and failure to satisfy the Order could result in a court order mandating compliance with the IRO. 

The training class will be broken into three main parts, and include the following examples of topics: 

Part 1: Detailed Dam Safety Inspections  

Detailed Inspection Overview, Phases of the Detailed Inspection Process, Best Practices and Lessons Learned, Estimating Level of Effort Required 

Part 2: Hydrology and Hydraulics 

Watershed Hydrology, Dam Hydraulics, Dam Breach Analysis, Incremental Consequence Analysis 

Part 3: Geotechnical and Structural Investigations  

Geophysical and Geotechnical Testing Methods, Structural Testing, Laboratory Testing, Geotechnical and Structure Analyses  

Licensed Professional Engineers from the engineering firm CDM Smith have developed the content and will conduct the training.  This engineering firm has been under contract to the SCDES Dam Safety Program since 2016 and is intimately familiar with the SC Dams and Reservoirs Safety Act, the Dams and Reservoirs Safety Act Regulations, and SCDES Dam Safety Program’s policies and procedures, making them well-suited to conduct this training.  Training personnel from CDM Smith are as follows: 

Steve Whiteside, P.E. is a Senior Geotechnical Engineer with 50 years of experience in dam, levee, and geotechnical engineering and construction services. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Duke University and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from Stanford University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in multiple states and supports planning, design, construction, and technical quality reviews for new dams and levees, rehabilitation of existing dams and levees, and dam decommissioning projects. He is a FERC-approved Independent Consultant for Part 12D inspections at hydropower projects licensed by FERC. 

Danielle Neamtu, P.E.  is a Geotechnical, Tunnels, and Dams Practice Leader with more than 27 years of experience in geotechnical investigations, foundation engineering, dams, trenchless installations, and solid waste. Danielle holds a Bachelor of Science in Civil and Environmental Engineering and a Master of Science in Civil Engineering, both from the University of Michigan. She is a licensed Professional Engineer in multiple states and supports planning, design, construction, and technical quality reviews for complex infrastructure projects. 

Derek Etkins, P.E. is a Senior Water Resources Engineer with more than 16 years of experience in dam safety engineering including spillway hydraulics, watershed hydrology, dam breach hazard analysis, and reservoir operations. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering from McGill University in Civil Engineering, and a Master of Science in Water Resources Engineering from Tufts University. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in multiple states, and supports projects related to Emergency Action Planning, spillway design, water management during construction, and dam removal. 

Heather Hyde, P.E. is a Project Manager and Senior Water Resources Engineer with 20 years of experience in watershed hydrology and hydraulics modeling, flood risk assessment, and stormwater master planning and design. She holds a Bachelor of Engineering from University of Central Florida. She is a licensed Professional Engineer and a Certified Floodplain Manager, and supports projects related to water related infrastructure, asset management, and watershed planning. 

Yes, 7 PDH hours will be available for completing the training.  Partial attendance will preclude attendees from obtaining any PDHs.  Professional Engineers must sign in before the start of the training in the morning and sign out following conclusion of the training in the afternoon to receive credit for full attendance and obtain a PDH certificate. 

No, lunch will not be provided to attendees, but there will be a 1-hour lunch break and there are many options for lunch within walking distance of the SCDES Headquarters. The Gather @ Bull Street food court, which has 10 different food vendors, is a short walk from the training location. 

Yes, you must register in advance for the training, primarily so SCDES can ensure there are seats for everyone and we don’t exceed the auditorium’s seating capacity.  SCDES is evaluating if the training can be simultaneously offered via an online platform but that has not been decided at this time.  For now, all interested should register and plan to attend in person.  Please register for the event here!  

As mentioned above, we are exploring the feasibility of offering the training in both in-person and virtual attendance options; regardless, SCDES will be recording this training and will post it to the web as soon as possible after November 4th.  Watching the recorded version will not result in PDHs being awarded, however.