The Dam Safety Management Center of MWR, originally called the Dam Safety Monitoring Center of MWR, established in May 1988, is an agency directly affiliated to MWR, practicing the function of administrative management, technical supervision, safety assessment and research and development of monitoring technology for reservoir dams in China.

For 20 years and more, with strong support of MWR and NHRI, the Center has made much progress in compilation of codes and regulations, dam safety assessment, risk evaluation and management, rehabilitation of defective dams, building of dam data bases, dam safety monitoring and digitalization.

Main Functions:
Administrative management and technical supervision of the dam safety sector;
Dam safety management, and research and development of monitoring technology.

Missions:
◎ Drafting of codes and regulations and compilation of technical standards for reservoir dam safety management;
◎ Organization and guidance of the construction of the national reservoir dam safety monitoring system, and analysis of monitored data;
◎ Drafting of related regulations for upgrading safety monitoring facilities and for rehabilitation of defective dams;
◎ Management of dam safety assessment, dam registration, data bases of large and median-size dams at national level;
◎ Development and construction of national reservoir dam safety information system, and giving guidance to provincial-level dam safety management sub-centers;
◎ Management of safety assessment of key defective dams in China, and participation in review of rehabilitation project design and in acceptance of the project;
◎ Technical supervision of dam safety monitoring instruments;
◎ Organization of dam safety training programs and academic exchange activities;
◎ Technical consultancy for dam safety management and software development for information management and service systems.

Main Projects Completed:
◎ Compilation and drafting of the following codes and regulations: Rules on Reservoir Dam Safety Management, Registration Method for Reservoir Dams, Reservoir Dam Safety Assessment Method, Rules on Reservoir Degradation and Abandonment (Proposed), Rehabilitation Management Method for Defective Reservoirs, Guidelines for Emergency Plan Compilation (Proposed), Technical Codes on Earth and Rock-fill Dam Safety Monitoring (SL60-94), Codes on Data Compilation for Earth and Rock-fill Dam Safety Monitoring (SL169-96), Guidelines for Reservoir Dam Safety Assessment (SL258-2000), Test Rules on Dam Safety Monitoring Instruments, Installation and Management Standards of Dam Safety Monitoring Instruments, Standards of Reservoir Degradation and Abandonment;
◎ Organization of regular safety inspection, assessment and evaluation of reservoir dams in China; compilation of national plans for rehabilitation of defective reservoirs in China; drafting of related rules for rehabilitation project management of defective reservoirs; participation in review of rehabilitation project design and in acceptance of the project; information management of defective reservoir rehabilitation projects; maintenance of the “monthly rehabilitation information report system of defective reservoirs”; review of the upgrading project for monitoring facilities of the first group of the large-size reservoirs and the second group of key defective reservoirs in China; and review of safety assessment results of Class-3 dams in China (more than 3,800 dams reviewed);
◎ Integration of registration data of reservoir dams in China; and development of construction of reservoir dam information system;
◎ Field investigation of reservoir dams in north China and small-size dams in China; field investigation of dam breeches of Gouhou Reservoir, Yawa Reservoir, Bayi Reservoir, Yingde’er Reservoir, Xiaomeizhi Reservoir, Ganggang Reservoir and Majin’ao Reservoir, etc.; participation of emergency action and investigation of 1998 Flood, Yunnan Pu’er Earthquake, and Sichuan Wenchuan Earthquake, etc.;
◎ Organization of tens of professional training courses on dam safety monitoring, safety management, risk assessment and management; organization of qualification tests for more than ten thousand staff members of small-size dams in China; organization of international training course on dam safety management; and organization of international and national conferences on dam safety management;
◎ International cooperation projects with CIDA, SM Co., Roctest Co., Hydro Quebec, BC Hydro, and CIPM of Canada, GHD of Australia, Gekon and Geomation of USA, Leica of Switzerland, Jaca of Japan, ICOLD, the World Bank;
◎ Carrying out related researches for MWR; and
◎ Technical consultancy for more than 100 reservoir dams in China regarding defect mechanism, safety diagnosis, risk assessment, etc., including the first safety analysis of Maoyangwan Reservoir in Shaanxi Province; and construction of auto safety monitoring systems for tens of large and median-size reservoir dams in China.