Risk concepts in the management of water infrastructure

In its fundamental form, risk is the likelihood of an adverse impact. The US Army Corps of Engineers has broadly defined risk associated with infrastructure as a factor of three distinct elements: a probabilistic assessment of a hazard such as a flood or earthquake; a probabilistic assessment of how the infrastructure will perform in the face of this hazard; and, a measure of the likely consequences (loss of life, economic damage, environmental impacts) associated with the resulting inundation. The lessons and observations described here relate to the Corps of Engineers’ experiences in implementing risk concepts for infrastructure (dam) management during the period 2005 to 2013.