Toward policies and decision-making for dam removal
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 24, 2025

Author Spotlight: Developing Cost-Effective and Customizable Balloon Tags for Fish Passage Studies
Published on: October 13, 2023
Martin W Doyle1, Jon M Harbor, Emily H Stanley
1Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Purdue University, 1397 Civil Engineering Building, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907-1397, USA. mwdoyle@email.unc.edu
Abstract:
Dam removal has emerged as a critical issue in environmental management. Agencies responsible for dams face a drastic increase in the number of potential dam removals in the near future. Given limited resources, these agencies need to develop ways to decide which dams should be removed and in what order. The underlying science of dam removal is relatively undeveloped and most agencies faced with dam removal lack a coherent purpose for removing dams. These shortcomings can be overcome by the implementation of two policies by agencies faced with dam removal: (1) the development and adoption of a prioritization scheme for what constitutes an important dam removal, and (2) the establishment of minimum levels of analysis prior to decision-making about a dam removal. Federal and state agencies and the scientific community must encourage an initial experimental phase of dam removal during which only a few dams are removed, and these are studied intensively. This will allow for the development of the fundamental scientific understanding needed to support effective decision-making in the future and minimize the risk of disasters arising from poorly thought out dam removal decisions.
Related Concept Videos
Applications of GIS: Disaster Management and Emergency Response
Design Example: Analyzing Capacity Contours for Flood Risk Assessment
Design Example: Creating a Hydraulic Model of a Dam Spillway
Decision Making: P-value Method
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is proposed. The claim is based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to the claim is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses: a null hypothesis would be a neutral statement while the alternative hypothesis can...
Decision Making: Traditional Method
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is decided based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to this claim is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses, out of which a null hypothesis would be a...
Responses to Drought and Flooding

