Dams and dam lakes (as well as any other hydraulic constructions) have their own features to be considered at all the stages of design and operation. Construction of dams and dam lakes significantly and irretrievably changes wild landscape and ecological equilibrium of the area.

In Russia, the first earth-fill dams were built in the X-XIII centuries. They certainly differed from modern dams, but already at that time soil features, its amount, climatic conditions and other external agents were taken into account in the course of dam construction.

Design of earth-fill dams requires a number of approximate analysis of filtration stability, stress, strains, outflanking of dam body and foundation, strike shift and many other factors. Design of concrete dams is a bit less difficult.

Estimated performance of structures is to be considered in the course of dam design. These are three water levels: the dead storage, normal headwater, and highest water levels which define the dead storage, useful and flood-control storage capacity, correspondingly.