Spillways are provided for storage and detention dams to release
surplus or flood water which cannot be contained in the allotted storage space, and diversion dams to bypass flows exceeding those which are turned into the diversion system.
In addition to provide sufficient capacity, the spillway must be
hydraulically and structurally adequate and must be located so that spillway discharges will not erode or undermine the downstream toe of the dam.
The spillway's bounding surfaces must be erosion resistant to
withstand the high scouring velocities created by the drop from the reservoir surface to tail water, and usually some device will be required for dissipation of energy at the bottom of the drop. . The frequency of spillway use will be determined by the runoff characteristics of the drainage flows will result during flood and periods of sustained high runoff when the capacities of other facilities are exceeded.
At diversion dams where storage space is limited and
diversions are relatively small compared to the normal river flows, the spillway will be used almost constantly