Vermont dam‑safety officials outline staffing increase, project priorities and financing risk for Waterbury and other state dams

Ben Vereen, section chief of the Dam Safety Program at the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, told the Legislative Institutions Committee the program now regulates roughly 1,000 nonfederal dams and directly owns 14 state dams, and that a recent staffing increase will expand the agency’s capacity to manage assessments, design and construction.

The committee heard detailed updates on the Waterbury Dam project, which officials said is the largest state‑owned dam and currently has $60 million in federal appropriations attached but a project estimate that has risen into the $80–$99 million range. Vereen said the state’s negotiated share for the federal allocation is about 7% of the $60 million (roughly $4.5 million). If the project ultimately costs about $90 million, the state would be responsible for the balance above the current combined allocation — officials said that could be on the order of $25 million more than the amounts currently in hand.

Why it matters: Waterbury and Wrightsville are flood‑control dams whose performance affects downstream communities. Committee members pressed agency staff on risks tied to rising cost estimates and on…