Outdoor enthusiasts enjoy the spillway near the Garrison Dam in Coleharbor, North Dakota.

An aerial view of Fort Randall Dam, Pickstown, South Dakota.

Salt Creek Dam and Reservoir near Ashland, Nebraska.

Six dam and reservoir projects on the upper reaches of the Missouri River and many smaller projects along Missouri River tributaries were built between 1932 and the early 1980s. Four of these reservoirs rank among the top 10 largest in the USACE inventory. Along with a system of federal and private levees, these projects reduce flood risks for urban and rural populations and property throughout the Missouri River watershed. The storage and release of water from these projects also plays a major role in supporting navigation on the Missouri River.

Three Omaha District dam and reservoir projects in the greater Denver, Colorado metropolitan area reduce flood risk to the lives and property along and near the South Platte River, Cherry Creek, and Bear Creek. These projects also support water quality, fish and wildlife conservation and recreation.

Learn more about the purposes of these projects by selecting a topic below or visit the web pages linked to the left for more detailed information.

The foremost goal of the Omaha District flood risk management mission is to reduce the loss of life and reduce property damage from flooding. While every year brings the possibility of a flood, risks have decreased since the days when rivers overflowed their banks almost yearly, affecting communities downstream.

While no one action, dam, levee or agency can eliminate flood risks, Omaha District works to:

• Improve public understanding of community risks from flooding and improve federal, state, and local agencies’ roles in reducing this risk.
• Assist communities in developing local actions to further reduce flood risks. This can include non-structural actions, levees, floodwalls, gate closures and drainage and floodplain improvements.
• Encourage informed risk reduction decisions by governments, individuals, the private sector and non-governmental organizations and provide technical information to support these decisions.

Opening and closing spillway gates to varying heights and managing releases through outlet tunnels and powerhouses help manage the amount of water released through the dam. Under extreme and unlikely conditions, significant releases may be necessary to keep water from flowing over a dam’s embankment.

USACE can estimate potential impacts from these high flows, ranging from erosion to structural failure, or even a potential dam breach. Downstream consequences from high flows could be devastating and possibly put thousands of lives at risk, overwhelm roads, damage levees and impact other critical infrastructure.

Many people who live in an area that could be flooded by a high dam release or failure may be unaware of potential impacts. It is important to know if you are in a dam flood inundation zone, which can include areas up and downstream of a dam.

To learn about the USACE Dam Safety Program, visit https://www.nwo.usace.army.mil/Missions/Civil-Works/Dam-and-Levee-Safety/.

To learn more about the goals and roles of reducing flood risk, visit https://usace.contentdm.oclc.org/utils/getfile/collection/p16021coll11/id/6814

To learn where you live in relation to a dam and read about actions to reduce your risk from dam-related flooding, visit https://nid.sec.usace.army.mil/#/learn/dams101.

Explore the National Inventory of Dams to view flood inundation maps for many USACE dams and learn how these maps can help downstream communities prepare for a flood. This resource also provides brief video descriptions of how dams work to reduce flood risks.

The many dam and reservoir projects in Omaha District help make USACE the largest provider of water-based outdoor recreation in the nation.

Visitors of all ages can enjoy traditional activities like hiking, boating, fishing, camping, and hunting. For the slightly more adventurous, there is snorkeling, windsurfing, whitewater rafting, mountain biking and geo-caching. Regardless of your favorite outdoor activity one thing is certain, recreation enriches people's lives. A visit to a USACE recreation area offers unforgettable memories and connects people to nature.

Navigation on the Missouri River covers a distance of 734 miles, from Sioux City to its mouth at St. Louis. Approximately 140 docks and terminals operate along the river. USACE has the responsibility under Congressional authorization for the operation and maintenance of the Missouri River for navigation in coordination with flood risk management and other purposes. Navigation support includes flow regulation and bank protection through projects like the Missouri Riverbank Stabilization and Navigation Project which provides a 9-foot deep, 300-foot wide navigation channel.

The commercial navigation season is normally from late March to early December. Specific minimum flow rates are required during this season to provide adequate river depths and width. A flow of 30,000 to 35,000 cubic feet of water per second in generally maintained at Sioux City and Omaha. During insufficient natural flows, water is released from Omaha District’s upper Missouri River mainstem dams.

Many of Omaha District’s dam and reservoir projects also produce hydropower. Overall, USACE is the nation's largest single producer of hydroelectricity. Nationwide, it operates 75 hydropower projects, housing 349 generator units with a total capacity of 20.7 million kilowatts, or about 3.5 percent of the nation's total electric power production.