Comprehensive Review on Sustainable Dam Infrastructure: Issues and Challenges, Factors Causing Dam Failure and Future Direction in a Globally Changing Climate

A dam is a hydraulic structure built to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and provide a safe and reliable water supply in a world where climate change is severe. This article provides a comprehensive review of the sustainability aspects of dams in terms of current issues and challenges in dam safety and factors causing dam failure based on the selected case studies. In addition, the selected dam safety guidelines are compared and addressed with the studied issues, challenges and factors leading to dam failure, as these two elements represent an integrated relationship. Future directions are identified to highlight high-risk scenarios and fascinating research areas for dam sustainability. The issues and challenges identified are mainly related to climate change impacts and operations. This study offers a wealth of benefits, such as the identification of factors leading to a failure (hydrological impacts, geotechnical condition, geological characteristics and ageing of the structure), improvements in decision-making (shortened time scale) and important fundamental research (fluid-structure interactions) for the modification of emergency plans and the development of early warning systems. In addition, the current study could provide a solid reference for accurate formulation and amendment of design standards, selection of reliable dam construction methods based on the factors of previous dam failures, and appropriate dam safety measures (monitoring and emergency response). In a nutshell, dam safety evaluation is crucial for the sustainability of dams, for accurate engineering decisions on regular maintenance measures and for protection against dam failures.