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<br />. Insurance: Many dam owners lack insurance to <br />cover their liabilities for loss of life and/or <br />damage to property in the event of dam failures. <br /> <br />. Public safety planning and awareness: Emergency <br />pr~paredness plans, for warning and evacuating <br />downstream residents in case of failure or <br />imminent failure of a dam, and alerting the <br />public to potential hazards associated with <br />dams, are needed. <br /> <br />. Costs of dam failure: The lack of knowledge by <br />federal and atate officiala and elected <br />representatives of the real costs of dam <br />failures precludes their rational determination <br />of proper funding levels for dam safety <br />activities. <br /> <br />. Post-failure investigations: A need exIsts for <br />conducting and coordinating investigations of <br />why a dam failed. <br /> <br />. Dam terminology: A common terminology for dam <br />safety activities ia needed. <br /> <br />These needs will now be discussed in detail. <br /> <br />5.1 DAM INVENTORY <br /> <br />5.1.1 Problem Description <br /> <br />The National Inventory Program has effectively <br />defined the scope of the inspection problem. It has <br />also helped shape policy decisions. However, the <br />federal inspection program for nonfederal dams has ended <br />and the states continue to have primary governmental <br />responsibility for nonfederal dam safety; therefore, the <br />need for inventories appears to be primarily at the <br />state level. In fact, up-to-date information is vital <br />to: the hazard classification and inspection processes, <br />effective emergency planning, flood plain management <br />programs, and to informing and aasisting the public. <br /> <br />t <br /> <br />While 40 states have current inventories, the <br />others depend on the Corps of Engineers' inventory. <br />With the termination of the Corps' program, many states <br /> <br />-24- <br />