Dam Safety Tool Box
Fact Sheets
Conduit Inspection Repair and RenovationHazard ReclassificationHigh Hazard Emergency Action PlansSignificant Hazard Emergency Action PlansBreach Inundation MapsDam TerminologyDam MaintenanceSelecting an EngineerDam UpgradingDam Safety IssuesFloodplain Fill
Selected Dam Safety Conference PresentationsSlipline ConsiderationsBurning on Dams: Prescribed FireCity Dam MaintenanceDam Inspection Report FormsDam InspectionU.S. Corps of Engineering PermittingAsian Carp: Aquatic Nuisance Species Threat to KansasSoil Type and Compaction Factors Influence on Erosion ResistanceDetection of Structural Components and Seepage Zones Using GeophysicsDrought Intensities and ImpactsNational Weather Service Role in Dam Emergency EventsWater and Kansas HistoryEmergency Watershed Protection Program
Dam Checklist slideshows featuring Kansas dam photographs and other YouTube videos
Seepage Tree Removal Cracking Erosion Animal Burrows Headcutting Overtopping
Also see Permit Inspection: Core Trench and Permit Inspection: Spillway Pipe Installation,
Often-Requested DWR InformationDam Safety Inspection Report Requirements and GuidelinesSample Design Report. DWR-required design report example.Rules and Regulations Checklist for Engineers. Form listing KAR 5-40-1 through 5-40-77 for engineers to ensure their plans are complete and meet DWR requirements. Model Dam Breach Inundation Zoning RegulationConsulting Engineers List. Neither intended to be complete listing nor an endorsement, this list of engineers with dam expertise was developed to provide a resource of available dam services.Significant Hazard Dam Emergency Action Plan High Hazard Dam Emergency Action Plan Form Design of Rock Chutes Excel Program to Design Rock Chutes for Grade Stabilization (Based on the research presented by Robinson, Rice, and Kadavy for the "Design of Rock Chutes," Transactions of the ASAE 41, 3:621-626, 1998, this Excel spreadsheet program (for Microsoft Office 97) was developed to aid in rock chute design); see Excel Sample (obtain an Excel version from Cindy.Higgins@kda.ks.gov).
Other Resources
The Association of State Dam Safety Officials offers timely information relevant to a variety of audiences. For example, see The Costs of Rehabilitating Our Nation's Dams; Living With Dams: Know Your Risks; and animated dam failure examples: Failure Modes: Overtopping and Failure Modes: Piping. Also, see other organizational publications and tools such as the following from the Natural Watershed Coalition:
Development Downstream From Flood Control Dams
Managing Operation and Maintenance (O&M) Agreements on Watershed Dams
Watershed Project Sponsor Responsibilities - Dams
How a Watershed Dam Works
Operation and Maintenance of Watershed Dams
State programs, too, often have resources of interest, for example, this Dam Safety Manual from Indiana has a useful section on maintenance; Texas’ Hydrologic and Hydraulic Guidelines for Dams provides detailed information on dam failure and inundation analysis; Oklahoma recently produced guides for maintenance and inspection; and Ohio has several publications, including fact sheets on lake drains, seepage, upstream slope protection, and concrete repair.
On the federal government level, the FEMA National Dam Safety Program publishes various media of interest to dam owners, emergency management, and engineers:
Conduits through Embankment Dams: Best Practices (FEMA L266)
Internal Erosion of Earth Dams
Animal Impacts on Dams (FEMA 473)
Plants on Dams Manual (FEMA 534)
Animal Impacts on Earthen Dams (FEMA L264)
Dam Sector Security Awareness Guide (FEMA 466)
Seepage through Embankment Dams (FEMA 535)
Dam Spillways (FEMA 536)
Spillway Gates (FEMA 537)
Hydrologic Issues of Dams (FEMA 538)
Outlet Works (FEMA 539)
Impacts of Plants and Animals on Earthen Dams (FEMA 540)
Embankment Dam Failure Analysis (FEMA 541)
Risk Assessment for Dams
Technical Manual: Plastic Pipe Used in Embankment Dams (FEMA P-675)
Technical Manual for Dam Owners: Impacts of Animals on Earthen Dams (FEMA 473)
Technical Manual: Conduits through Embankment Dams (FEMA 484)
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation offers Design of Small Dams, a classic text on dams, and Prediction of Embankment Dam Breach Parameters:A Literature Review and Needs Assessment that has a database with information on 108 previously and newly documented dam failure case studies. Also of interest is the National Resource Conservation Service that has state specific and general information available on dams, including Filter Diaphragms, and Earth Dams and Reservoirs (TR60) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which offers:
Design and Construction Levees (Corps EM 1110-2-1913)
Culverts, Conduits and Pipe (Corps EM 110-2-2902)
Gravity Dam Design (EM 1110-2-2200)
Guidelines for Safety Inspections of Dam (Corps ER 1110-2-106)
These U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration publications, too, have proved helpful in dam design, including Stilling Basin Design and Stilling Well.
