Dam vs Embankment | Difference Between Dam and Embankment

Well there are many differences between dam and embankment. To make it clear, let’s analyze the differences in a dam vs embankment table as below.

Topic	Dam	Embankment
Location	Vertical to river direction	Parallel to river at safe distance
Main function	Creating reservoir during upstream	Force a river to flow in its own direction
Best place for construction	Along with the narrow width of a river	Downstream of a river or river bank near a city.
Construction materials	Soil, masonry, concrete etc	Generally: sand
Service time	Lifetime	Only during flood
Effect on river bed	Sediment occurs, river bed gets filled	River bed erosion occurs due to increase of water current.
Effect on flood	Can cause flood during upstream	Reduce flood affect
Effect on water flow in river	Decrease river flow velocity	Increase river flow velocity (also during flood)
Maintenance	Always	Maintenance is required especially before and after flood
Length	Equal to river width	Couple of kilometers to hundreds of kilometers depending on necessity.