Azad Dam
Encyclopedia
Azad Dam is an under construction embankment dam
on the Gura River, 40 km (25 mi) west of Sanandaj
in Kordestan province, Iran
. It is situated in Kurdistan Province
and its construction is part of a water management plan for Kurdistan Province
. It is currently under construction and when completed, it will have an installed electricity generating capacity of 30 MW and an additional pumped storage
power plant with a regenerating capacity of 500 MW.
The pumped storage
power plant is to be connected to the dam via a 1600 metres (5,249.3 ft) tunnel of which 110 metres (360.9 ft) had already been built by June 2010. The dam with a length of 595 metres (1,952.1 ft) and a height of 115 metres (377.3 ft), is to have a maximum storage capacity of 260000000 cubic metre of water. A 175 kilometres (108.7 mi) canal connecting the dam with towns of Qarveh and Dehlegan will annually supply over 0.25 cubic kilometre of water for agricultural purposes to these towns. As the water table
of these towns have gone down by over 18 metres (59.1 ft) due to the excessive use of underground water for crop cultivation, the construction of this dam will help to conserve the underground water sources of the area. One village had to be relocated due to construction of the dam and another new village has been built near the body of the dam. It is estimated that Azad dam will yearly produce approximately 95 GWh of electricity. The dam is to become fully operational by 2013.
Embankment dam
An embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...
on the Gura River, 40 km (25 mi) west of Sanandaj
Sanandaj
Sanandaj , also Romanized as Senneh and Sinneh) is a city in and the capital of Kurdistan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 311,446, in 81,380 families....
in Kordestan province, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. It is situated in Kurdistan Province
Kurdistan Province
Kurdistan Province or Kordestan Province or Kurdestan Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, not to be confused with the greater geographical area of Iranian Kurdistan. The province of Kurdistan is 28,817 km² in area which encompasses just one-fourth of the Kurdish inhabited areas of Iran or...
and its construction is part of a water management plan for Kurdistan Province
Kurdistan Province
Kurdistan Province or Kordestan Province or Kurdestan Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, not to be confused with the greater geographical area of Iranian Kurdistan. The province of Kurdistan is 28,817 km² in area which encompasses just one-fourth of the Kurdish inhabited areas of Iran or...
. It is currently under construction and when completed, it will have an installed electricity generating capacity of 30 MW and an additional pumped storage
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric power generation used by some power plants for load balancing. The method stores energy in the form of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. Low-cost off-peak electric power is used to run the pumps...
power plant with a regenerating capacity of 500 MW.
The pumped storage
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity
Pumped-storage hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric power generation used by some power plants for load balancing. The method stores energy in the form of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. Low-cost off-peak electric power is used to run the pumps...
power plant is to be connected to the dam via a 1600 metres (5,249.3 ft) tunnel of which 110 metres (360.9 ft) had already been built by June 2010. The dam with a length of 595 metres (1,952.1 ft) and a height of 115 metres (377.3 ft), is to have a maximum storage capacity of 260000000 cubic metre of water. A 175 kilometres (108.7 mi) canal connecting the dam with towns of Qarveh and Dehlegan will annually supply over 0.25 cubic kilometre of water for agricultural purposes to these towns. As the water table
Water table
The water table is the level at which the submarine pressure is far from atmospheric pressure. It may be conveniently visualized as the 'surface' of the subsurface materials that are saturated with groundwater in a given vicinity. However, saturated conditions may extend above the water table as...
of these towns have gone down by over 18 metres (59.1 ft) due to the excessive use of underground water for crop cultivation, the construction of this dam will help to conserve the underground water sources of the area. One village had to be relocated due to construction of the dam and another new village has been built near the body of the dam. It is estimated that Azad dam will yearly produce approximately 95 GWh of electricity. The dam is to become fully operational by 2013.