Reservoir Drawdown

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“Where practicable, reservoir release facilities should be provided to lower the pool to a safe level adequate to correct conditions that might threaten the integrity of the dam”.

“Low level outlets are provided to maintain downstream flows for all levels of the reservoirs operational pool. The outlets may also serve to empty the reservoir to permit inspection, to make needed repairs, or to maintain the upstream face of the dam or other structures normally inundated”.

Examples

Learn about the important of having an operable reservoir drain at DamFailures.org

Best Practices Resources

Design Standards No. 14: Appurtenant Structures for Dams (Ch. 4: General Outlet Works Design Considerations) (Bureau of Reclamation)

Hydrologic Engineering Requirements for Reservoirs (EM 1110-2-1420) (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)

Selecting and Accommodating Inflow Design Floods for Dams (Federal Emergency Management Agency)

Citations:

Revision ID: 3636
Revision Date: 09/16/2022