2026 Webinar and Workshop Training Opportunities Coming Soon

Interested in pre-purchasing webinars for your team at a discount? Reach out to conferences@ussdams.org for more information. If you would like to be notified when the registration opens for a certain course, fill out this form.

Due January 6: Final Call for Nominations & Applications 🏆 

USSD is proud to recognize standout contributions across the dam and levee community—while also investing in the next generation of engineers and innovators.

✨ Awards: Nominate individuals and projects driving excellence in our industry, including:

• Lifetime Achievement Award
• Excellence in Constructed Project Award
• Exceptional Young Professional of the Year
• Public Safety, Security & Emergency Management Recognition
  …plus the NEW Kenneth D. Hansen Concrete Dam Paper Award featuring a $10,000 prize.

🎓 Scholarships: Students can apply for the 2026 Kim de Rubertis Student Scholarship Awards, supporting future leaders in dam safety and water resources.

Recipients will be recognized at the 2026 USSD Annual Conference. Learn more and submit at https://www.ussdams.org

Please join us at the

2026 Annual Conference & Exhibition

Join hundreds of dam & levee professionals and experts from around the world as USSD gathers in the Live Music Capital for four days of knowledge exchange, networking, and fun!

Attendees: Register Now for Early Bird Rates 

Exhibitors: Reserve Now/View Live Map 

This year's event will feature:

• Committee Meetings that drive the future of dam safety and innovation
• 120 Technical Sessions and Six workshops designed to strengthen your skills and expertise
• A powerful Legacy of Teton Dam session reflecting on lessons that shape our industry
• Collaboration sessions to share ideas and spark solutions
• Enhanced networking opportunities to grow your professional community
• And of course—Austin-style fun with BBQ, tacos, and Texas energy!

Conference Center: Hilton Austin. 500 E 4th St., Austin, TX 78701
Lodging: Please use this direct booking link for onsite attendee lodging

Event website coming soon!

🌟 Dam History Spotlight: Buchanan Dam—A Texas Legacy

	Lake Buchanan and Dam

As we look ahead to the 2026 USSD Annual Conference in Austin, we're highlighting one of Texas’ most significant engineering achievements: Buchanan Dam, the first and uppermost reservoir in the LCRA Highland Lakes system.

Located northwest of Burnet on the Colorado River, Buchanan Dam carries a remarkable history of resilience, political maneuvering, and engineering ambition.

🔹 1850s origins: The dam site was first identified by Burnet County surveyor Adam Johnson, who sketched the idea decades before construction ever began.
🔹 A project nearly lost: Construction started in 1931 under a private utility, but bankruptcy halted progress at less than halfway complete.
🔹 Texas persistence: Attorney Alvin Wirtz secured federal funding with one condition: Texas needed a public agency to own and operate the project. After multiple legislative attempts, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) was officially created in 1934.
🔹 Building the future: LCRA restarted construction in 1935, and by 1938 the dam was complete, with the first generator running in early 1938.

Buchanan Dam is more than infrastructure. It represents innovation, negotiation, and Texas determination. https://lnkd.in/ebMPeQ2A.

Upcoming Webinars 

View a full list of USSD upcoming events

The 2026 training calendar will be released soon. If you would like to be notified when the registration opens for a certain course, fill out this form.

INVITATION FROM ICOLD REGISTRATION NOW OPEN You are warmly invited to attend the 94th Annual Meeting and Symposium of the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD), taking place May 22–29, 2026, in Guadalajara, Mexico. Hosted by the Mexican Committee on Large Dams, the event will feature high-quality technical sessions, opportunities for professional exchange, and a vibrant social program in a city celebrated for its rich culture, history, and hospitality. Link: https://www.icoldmexico2026.com/

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DAM! Podcast 🎧 Hydro 101: Lock in on locks

Northwest Hydropower’s DAM! Podcast is back with another Hydro 101 installment, designed to break down the fundamentals of hydropower and its role in our energy and environmental systems.

In this episode, the team dives into one of the most important pieces of inland waterway infrastructure: locks. From their early engineering roots to how today’s systems function as “water elevators,” this conversation offers an accessible look at the structures that keep commerce, navigation, and river systems moving. https://lnkd.in/dKk7vUeS

New from DHS: Advancing Safety at Low-Head Dams

The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate has released a powerful new feature article highlighting national efforts to reduce fatalities at low-head dams—structures often called “drowning machines” due to their hidden, life-threatening currents.

With more than 13,500 low-head dams across the U.S. and hundreds of documented fatalities, DHS and partners like Brigham Young University, FEMA, USACE, and state dam safety agencies are developing predictive tools, warning systems, and national inventories to help communities identify hazards before they become deadly.

This research represents a critical step toward improving public safety, supporting emergency responders, and strengthening resilience across the nation’s dam infrastructure. Read the full DHS feature: https://lnkd.in/ecjfDaTT

USSD Career Center (Active Job Posts)

• Senior Dam Safety Engineer, Slate Geotechnical Consulants

Subscribe to receive job posting notifications in your inbox! Sign up on the USSD Career Center.

📣 Got big news to share? We want to hear it!

Whether you're presenting at a conference, featured in a publication, or leading a major project that supports the dam and levee community—let USSD help you spread the word!

Sharing your story is easy:
1️⃣ Collect the details: who, what, where, and when
2️⃣ Fill out a quick form
3️⃣ Hit submit! We’ll take it from there.