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Dam Safety Program

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (USACE) Dam Safety Program uses a risk-informed approach to manage its portfolio of 694 dams, with public safety the number one priority. This robust risk-informed approach is a best practice adopted to develop balanced and informed assessments of the safety of our dams and to evaluate, prioritize and justify dam safety decisions.

Critical to an effective safety program is, of course, the focus on public safety, but it also requires continuous and periodic project inspections and evaluations. The Dam Safety Program seeks to ensure that USACE owned and operated dams do not present unacceptable risks to people, property, or the environment, with the emphasis on people.

USACE has learned a great deal about its dams through an initial screening of its portfolio. More importantly, however, are the lessons we learn about how to continually adjust and fine tune the program.

Overhead view of the Pomme de Terre Dam. Pomme de Terre Lake is located in the rugged, tree covered hills of the west central Missouri Ozarks on the Pomme de Terre River. The Pomme de Terre Project was authorized by Congress in 1938 as part of a comprehensive flood control plan for the Missouri River Basin. Project Planning was initiated in 1947 and actual construction began in 1957. The lake was completed in 1961 at a cost of $14,946,784.
Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Civil Engineer Susan Abbott inspects displaced riprap around the Rathbun Dam stilling basin during the Rathbun annual dam safety inspection in Aug. 2020 at Rathbun Lake, Iowa.
A view of the Tuttle Creek stilling basin from the top of the dam July 19, 2021. Rehabilitation of the stilling basin will soon be complete.
A tabletop exercise for Truman Dam and the communities that surround and are downstream from the lake took place at Truman Lake September 29, 2021. Representative from several local and regional emergency management agencies joined USACE to practice scenarios and coordinate communication priorities.
Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.

Overview of the Kansas City District Dam Safety Program

Visualizing Dams: Routine Dam Operations

Visualizing Dams: Operational Flood Risk

Tour the National Inventory of Dams

Contact Us

Dam Safety Program Manager

Phone: 816-389-2365

Click to e-mail

Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.
Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.
Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.
Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.
Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.
Living with dams is a shared responsibility and requires constant assessment, continuous communication and engagement with local public and emergency management agencies. The Kansas City District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, operates and manages 18 dams in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa. Flood control serves as the primary purpose of these dams. Corps reservoirs provide many other benefits including recreation activities.