America’s dams and levees play a critical role in protecting communities, supporting water management, and strengthening economies. On August 26 at 2 p.m. ET, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will host an upcoming webinar, Making the Grade: Dams/Levees, bringing together leading engineers and infrastructure experts to discuss both challenges and solutions sustaining these essential facilities.
The webinar will explore key findings from the 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, which assigned a D+ to the nation’s dams and levees – an improvement from their 2021 grades, but an indication that significant deficiencies remain.
Understanding the Grades
Released every four years, the Report Card evaluates the condition and performance of the nation’s infrastructure across a range of criteria, including:
- Safety
- Resilience
- Innovation
- Funding
- Capacity and condition
While improvements in both dams and levees contributed to higher grades in 2025, aging infrastructure, limited funding for maintenance and rehabilitation, and increasing impacts from extreme weather continue to pose serious risks to communities nationwide.
The report also identifies several priority actions to improve performance and resilience, including:
- Conducting enhanced risk assessments for levee systems
- Strengthening land-use planning around dam infrastructure and downstream communities
- Expanding data collection and analysis related to dam conditions, performance, and removal decisions
- Increasing investment in maintenance, rehabilitation, and modernization efforts
Hear from Infrastructure Leaders
The August 26 webinar will bring together experts from across the dams and levees community to provide valuable insights into current needs, emerging solutions, and opportunities for improving infrastructure performance.
Panelists include:
- Dan Wade, GEI Consultants
- Mike Bachard, GEI Consultants
- Bill Foos, U.S. Society on Dams
- John Roche, Association of State Dam Safety Officials
- Del Shannon, ASCE Committee on America’s Infrastructure
Together, panelists will discuss the factors behind the 2025 grades, ongoing challenges facing owners and operators, and strategies for building safer and more resilient infrastructure systems.
Join the Conversation
Register now and join ASCE on August 26 at 2:00 p.m. ET to learn more about the state of the nation’s dams and levees, and the steps needed to strengthen their ability to serve future generations.