Levee Levee A levee (), dike, dyke, embankment, floodbank or stopbank is an elongated naturally occurring ridge or artificially constructed fill or wall, which regulates water levels. It is usually earthen and often parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastlines. Speakers of American English (notably in the Midwest and Deep South), use the word "levee", from the French word "levée" (from the feminine past participle of the French verb "lever", "to raise"). It originated in New Orleans a few years after the city's founding in 1718 and was later adopted by English speakers. The
Sanitary sewer overflow because combined sewers designed for the additional volume of surface runoff are much larger than sanitary sewers. Combined sewer storm water regulators may be vulnerable to blockage by debris, but overflow from such blockage typically enters the diversion outfall to avoid flooding private or public property. Approximately one-quarter of United States SSOs occur during heavy rainfall events, which can cause inflow of stormwater into sanitary sewers through damage, improper connections, or flooding buildings and lift stations in low-lying areas of the collection system. The combined flow of sewage and stormwater exceeds the capacity of the sanitary sewer system and sewage