Levee

For other uses, see Levee (disambiguation).

Components of an artificial levee:
  1. Design high water level (HWL)
  2. Low water channel
  3. Flood channel
  4. Riverside slope
  5. Riverside banquette
  6. Levee crown
  7. Landside slope
  8. Landside banquette
  9. Berm
  10. Low water revetment
  11. Riverside land
  12. Levee
  13. Protected lowland
  14. River zone
The side of a levee in Sacramento, California

A levee (/ˈlɛvi/ or /ˈlɛveɪ/),[a][1] dike (American English), dyke (British English; see spelling differences), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is an elevated ridge, natural or artificial, alongside the banks of a river, often intended to protect against flooding of the area adjoining the river. It is usually earthen and often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastlines.[2]

Naturally occuring levees form on river floodplains following flooding, where sediment and alluvium is deposited and settles, forming a ridge and increasing the river channel's capacity. Alternatively, levees can be artificially constructed from fill, designed to regulate water levels. In some circumstances, artifical levees can be environmentally damaging.[3]

Ancient civilizations in the Indus Valley, ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and China all built levees. Today, levees can be found around the world, and failures of levees due to erosion or other causes can be major disasters,[4] such as the catastrophic 2005 levee failures in Greater New Orleans that occurred as a result of Hurricane Katrina.


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  1. ^ "levee". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  2. ^ Henry Petroski (2006). "Levees and Other Raised Ground". American Scientist. 94 (1): 7–11. doi:10.1511/2006.57.7.
  3. ^ "Flood risk reduction with multiple benefits: more space for the river". www.preventionweb.net. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
  4. ^ "A Look at Preventing Levee Erosion". Federal Emergency Management Agency. 11 February 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2023.