General approach to dam surveillance To aid dam owners and managers, the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD)

offers a technical bulletin specifying a general approach to dam surveillance. Bulletin 138, Surveillance: Basic Elements in a "Dam Safety" Process, was prepared by the ICOLD Technical Committee on Dam Surveillance. This committee is made up of 26 members from 26 countries. Bernard Goguel, chairman of the committee, was the lead author of the bulletin. The purpose of this bulletin is to illustrate how dam surveillance can be used to manage the risks associated with poor performance or failure of a dam and reduce the probability of this occurrence. Dam surveillance covers a series of complementary and redundant activities, including visual inspections, dam documentation management, manual and automated monitoring, equipment checking and testing, and dam condition and behavior assessment. The 46-page bulletin addresses the basic elements of surveillance, the complementary and redundant activities involved in surveillance for dam safety, principles and rules of surveillance, and monitoring linked to metrology. To order this bulletin for 30 euros (US$43), visit www.icold-cigb.org and click on Publications, then Bulletins. ICOLD plans to publish a second, more detailed bulletin, entitled Surveillance Guide. This bulletin will update and complete previous ICOLD bulletins, including 60 and 68. ICOLD is a nongovernmental organization that provides a forum for the exchange of knowledge and experience in dam engineering. To learn more about ICOLD activities, contact Michel De Vivo, Secretary-General, ICOLD, 61 avenue Kleber, Paris 75116 France; (33) 1-47041780; E-mail: secretaire.general@icold-cigb.org.