Giant Hole

At first glance you might mistake a bell-mouth spillway for a watery vortex into another dimension. What can only be described as a giant hole in the water is actually a method for controlling the release of flows from a dam or levee into a downstream area. These spillways help prevent floods from ‘dam’-aging or destroying a dam.

SPILLWAYS

A spillway is a structure used to provide for the controlled release of flows from a dam or levee into a downstream area, typically being the river that was dammedSpillways release floods so that the water does not overtop and damage or even destroy the dam. Except during flood periods, water does not normally flow over a spillway

• In contrast, an intake is a structure used to release water on a regular basis for water supply, hydroelectricity generation, etc.
• Floodgates and fuse plugs may be designed into spillways to regulate water flow and dam height
• Other uses of the term “spillway” include bypasses of dams or outlets of a channels used during highwater, and outlet channels carved through natural dams such as moraines

LADYBOWER RESEVOIR

The images above are from the spillways located at the Ladybower Resevoir

• The Ladybower Reservoir is a large Y-shaped reservoir, the lowest of three in the Upper Derwent Valley in Derbyshire, England
• The River Ashop flows into the reservoir from the west; the River Derwent flows south, initially through Howden Reservoir, then Derwent Reservoir, and finally through Ladybower Reservoir
• Its longest dimension is just over 3 miles (5km), and at the time of construction it was the largest reservoir in Britain (1943)