Flood Control

Dams Dams help control the flow of water down major rivers. That flow of water is then turned into electricity. The Tennessee Valley Authority, which was created as part of FDR’s New Deal, built many dams in the Southeastern U.S. They still are a major source of hydro-electric power today. You can explore their site to learn more about dams, hydro-electricity and flood prevention. Storm Drain Management Heavy rainfall can also lead to large amounts of water running through the city’s storm drain system. As more and more people live in cities, pollution becomes a bigger and bigger problem. You can learn more about storm water pollution here. To learn more about water and the water cycle click here. To learn more about watersheds, click here. Levees Levees are designed to control the flow of water. Unlike dams, they do not block a river. Instead they make the sides of the river taller to prevent flood damage to nearby cities, houses and businesses. To learn all about levees click on the levee simulator on the webpage linked here. To learn about the risk of flooding click here. To learn about the cost of flooding click on the simulation tool here. Natural Disasters Prevention Simulation Check out www.stopdisastersgame.org for a simulation on disaster prevention. You will be put in charge of a small town and will be given the task of trying to keep your town safe from a flood, hurricane, tsunami, earthquake or wild fire. You can also learn all about prevention techniques such as drainage systems and various types of levees.