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In river landscape water storage, watershed ecological restoration, flood‑control regulation and water‑environment improvement projects, inflatable rubber dams and air‑shield dams are two widely‑adopted low‑carbon flexible water‑retaining facilities. Compared with traditional concrete sluice‑gates and dams, both types feature less civil‑engineering work, shorter construction periods, unobstructed flood discharge and minor disturbance to river ecology. They are well‑suited for green water‑conservancy construction and long‑term watershed governance under the carbon‑neutrality initiative. Nevertheless, notable differences exist in structural characteristics, service life, construction cost, operation‑maintenance requirements and operating performance in practical engineering applications. Selecting the appropriate dam type according to project working conditions is critical to controlling project costs, lowering operation‑and‑maintenance energy consumption and guaranteeing long‑term watershed‑governance outcomes.

Structural design constitutes their core distinction. The inflatable rubber dam adopts an integral flexible rubber dam‑bag structure. It rises and falls for water retention through air inflation and deflation, featuring a simple structure and convenient installation. The air‑shield dam applies a rigid‑flexible combined structure consisting of air bags and steel shield plates. Its air bags are concealed behind the shield plates and are not directly exposed to water flow, floating debris or sand‑gravel, fundamentally mitigating the wear‑and‑tear and scratch‑prone drawbacks of rubber components.

Service life represents the most prominent gap between the two dam types, which directly determines the full‑life‑cycle benefits of a project. A conventional inflatable rubber dam has a designed service life of 15‑20 years. Its entire rubber dam bag is exposed outdoors for long periods, suffering continuous ageing from ultraviolet radiation, friction caused by river‑borne floating debris and erosion from water‑flow‑borne sediment, resulting in rapid performance degradation. Upon expiry of its service life, the whole dam bag needs to be dismantled and replaced. This not only raises project investment but also generates extra carbon emissions from repeated construction. In contrast, the air‑shield dam adopts a segmented durable design. Its anti‑corrosion‑treated steel shield plates deliver a main‑structure service life of 30‑45 years. Only the built‑in air bags count as vulnerable components, which can be replaced as needed every 15‑20 years. Moreover, the air bags support modular individual replacement without dismantling the main shield‑plate assembly or civil‑engineering structures. This greatly reduces construction disturbance, solid‑waste output and operation‑and‑maintenance‑related carbon emissions.

In terms of operating performance, the air‑shield dam shows comprehensive advantages in environmental adaptability. The inflatable rubber dam requires long‑duration air inflation and deflation and offers limited accuracy in water‑level regulation. It is only fit for gentle urban landscape rivers with steady water flow and little floating debris and no risk of flash floods. The air‑shield dam achieves fast gate operation, completing lifting and lowering within 30 minutes. It enables stepless precise adjustment of dam height for stable control of ecological base flow in rivers. Meanwhile, its shield plates can withstand impacts from sand‑gravel and floating debris, making it suitable for river courses with heavy sediment and abundant debris. It also boasts excellent cold‑resistance and frost‑resistance, adapting to complex scenarios such as mountain‑valley rivers and frigid regions. It delivers stronger emergency flood‑regulation capacity and presents neat and aesthetic overflow‑landscape effects.

In conclusion, dam‑type selection for flexible dams shall be closely aligned with project positioning and service‑cycle requirements. For short‑term landscape‑water‑storage projects with constrained budgets, tight construction schedules and simple working conditions, the cost‑effective inflatable rubber dam is a preferred option. For key water‑conservancy projects prioritizing long‑term watershed ecological governance, high flood‑emergency requirements, complex river‑course working conditions and low‑carbon long‑term operation‑maintenance, the air‑shield dam serves as a more reliable choice, realizing the integrated unification of project economic benefits, ecological benefits and carbon‑reduction benefits.