Water Stories
![Regulated dams, like this 58-foot-tall example above, should feature proper vegetation control that increases the efficiency and effectiveness of an inspection.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2023/05/damthumb.jpg?itok=V9TWCfoT)
Dams and reservoirs play important roles in enhancing the quality of life in Missouri.
![Department and city of Perryville leaders break ground on Perryville's Southeast Wastewater Treatment Plant in September 2020.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2022/12/ThriveThumb.jpg?itok=NsUMjwRq)
Creative assistance programs help fund costly upgrades to water and wastewater systems.
![Dry corn plants stand in a field.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2022/12/DroughtThumb.jpg?itok=MCpsWo3G)
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has been working on several projects to reduce future issues related to flooding and drought.
![An image of architectural plans for the Salt Creek bridge.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2022/12/ConceptThumb.jpg?itok=GvzBJRDk)
Strengthening our parks and historic sites with capital investments for the future.
![Photo of Belinda Hughes.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2021/09/Belinda01.jpg?itok=FdiuMvio)
For nearly eight years, I sat next to Belinda Hughes here in our publications office.
![Water rushes from a partial breach in the Glover Spring Lake Dam in Fulton, on Aug. 3, 2016, as department staff assess the damage. The department assisted Callaway County officials in evaluating the risks associated with the breach and advised landowners on repair.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2021/09/GloverSpringLake_%20DamBreach_bn_001_thumb.jpg?itok=umVEArbQ)
A dam failure could be catastrophic, but the Dam and Reservoir Safety Program aims to ensure the worst never happens.
![Photo of a street in Rolla, Kansas during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s with a dramatic dust cloud on the horizon.](/sites/missouriresources/files/styles/max_325x325/public/media/image/2021/09/dust-bowl-thumb_1.jpg?itok=znb1sDgZ)
High rates of erosion during the Dust Bowl led to the creation of the Missouri Soil and Water Conservation Districts in 1944.