Safety resources for dam owners
Guidelines
Guideline for failure impact assessment of water dams (2018) (PDF, 2.2MB)
Dam safety management guideline (2024) (PDF, 2.1MB)
Emergency action plan for referable dam guideline (2023) (PDF, 1.8MB)
Guideline on safety assessments for referable dams
This is for owners and operators of referable dams or their employees and consultants.
Other dam owners, decision makers and those wishing to understand the context and justification of dam safety standards will also find it useful.
In it you will find detail about:
- regulatory requirements for the safety of referable dams
- safety assessments (incorporating standards and risk-based methodologies)
- timeframes for reducing risks at dams and circumstances where a reduced full supply level should be considered.
This 2025 edition (Version 9) supersedes all previous versions of the Guideline. This version is updated to remove the 2035 date for the Chief Executive to consider upgrade timeframes, and minor edits such as updating with the new department name.
Download and read the Guidelines on safety assessments for referable dams (V9, Dec 2025) (PDF, 1.2MB)
Guidance notes
These best practice guidance notes are for owners and operators of referable dams or their employees and consultants.
Other dam owners, decision makers and those wishing to understand the context and justification of dam safety standards will also find these useful.
- Use of LIFESIM for prediction of probable loss of life (Sept 2025 V1) (PDF, 4.6MB)
Information on the use of LIFESIM for predicting life safety consequences associated with dam failure scenarios. - Application of Australian Rainfall and Runoff Climate Change Chapter to Dams (Sept 2025 V1) (PDF, 308KB)
Information on incorporating the latest climate change data from Australian Rainfall and Runoff (2019) into dam safety assessments.
Links
The Australian National Committee on Large Dams (ANCOLD)
Queensland Fire Department (QFD)
Seqwater publications (including flood mitigation manuals for gated dams)
Disaster management in your local area – Get Ready Queensland
District Disaster Management Groups (DDMG) map (PDF, 545KB)
Disaster management in Queensland
Read about the Department of Local Government, Water and Volunteers' role as the regulator