Wis. dam inspections fall behind schedule

Ben Poston and Patrick Marley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel analyzed a database of state dam inspections and found that Wisconsin inspectors have failed to inspect dozens of dams that could pose a danger in the event of a break. In all, the state Department of Natural Resources has not inspected at least 230 state-regulated dams — including 67 that are considered a "high or significant hazard" — since August 1997, despite a state law that requires inspections at least once every 10 years. The reporters also posted a searchable database of the state-regulated dams on the newspaper's Data on Demand site.