Introduction Small dams and impoundments are important landscape features and provide valued recreational resources in many Wisconsin communities. However, as aging dams deteriorate and thus become a safety hazard, many communities are forced to make the difficult decision to either shoulder the financial burden of repairing and maintaining the dam or to remove the dam. Each dam in Wisconsin is unique and has its own individual site-specific characteristics and problems.
Every community has a different history, social make-up, and aesthetic value system.
Also, for each site, different economic, engineering, legal, and environmental factors are pertinent. The goals are to gather enough information so that your community can make an informed decision about whether to repair or remove your dam and to find a process for making the decision. The earlier that you are able to recognize a potential problem or identify an area where the community has insufficient information, the more time you have to get that information and develop solutions that satisfy the best interests of the community and the resource. In this summary, we lay out the important issues to consider in making the decision, the basic facts related to dams and watersheds, the legal framework, the economical factors to be considered when making a decision, and introduce decision-making processes.