Dam and Reservoir Safety Permit

A safety permit is an operating permit that is issued for a dam built after Aug. 13, 1981. Once a dam is completed by means of a construction permit, the landowner may apply for a safety permit. The construction permit requirements for new dam construction are defined in Chapter 3 of 10 CSR 22. The safety permit is not a guarantee of the dam and reservoir’s safety and does not alter the owner’s liability; it is simply an operating permit. If a dam and reservoir were not subject to the provisions of the law when they were constructed but subsequently become subject to the provisions of the law, the owner shall obtain a registration permit, not a safety permit. Safety permits may contain appropriate conditions for the operation and safety of the dam and reservoir.  

There are two types of dams and reservoirs. Industrial water retention dams and reservoirs are used for the purpose of storing solids and the water associated with the particular industrial process such as tailings, slime and other similar industrial materials. The second type is the conventional dams and reservoirs. Dams and reservoirs are further classified by the downstream environment zones. 

• Class I contains 10 or more permanent dwellings or any public building. 
• Class II contains one to nine permanent dwellings or one or more campgrounds with permanent water, sewer and electrical services or one or more industrial buildings. 
• Class III is everything else. 

If development increases downstream from a permitted dam, the department’s staff will make a judgment regarding whether or not the new development warrants changing the dam’s downstream hazard classification zone to a higher class during the renewal or construction application process.    

Locate permitted dams using GeoSTRAT.

Length of Permit

Safety permits may be issued for a time period up to five years. Prior to expiration, a safety permit must be renewed by the following procedure described in 10 CSR 22-2.060. 

Laws, Rules and Regulations

• Federal Law: Federal Clean Water Act
• State Law: Dams, Mills and Electric Power Chapter 236, RSMo 
• Code of State Regulations: Division 22 – Dam and Reservoir Safety and Council, 10 CSR 22 Chapters 1-4
• Commission, Board, Council: Missouri Dam and Reservoir Safety Council