The Nampho Dam or West Sea Dam, also known as the West Sea Barrage, is a barrage

Tidal barrage

A tidal barrage is a dam-like structure used to capture the energy from masses of water moving in and out of a bay or river due to tidal forces....

 located 15 km west of the special city of Nampho, North Korea

North Korea

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

. It is a huge, eight-kilometer-long system of dams, three lock chambers, and 36 sluice

Sluice

A sluice is a water channel that is controlled at its head by a gate . For example, a millrace is a sluice that channels water toward a water mill...

s, allowing the passage of ships up to 50,000 tons. The dam closes the Taedong River

Taedong River

The Taedong River is a large river in North Korea. It rises in the Rangrim Mountains of the country's north. It then flows southwest into Korea Bay at Namp'o. In between, it runs through the country's capital, Pyongyang. Along the river are landmarks such as the Juche Tower and Kim Il-sung...

 off from the Yellow Sea

Yellow Sea

The Yellow Sea is the name given to the northern part of the East China Sea, which is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It is located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula. Its name comes from the sand particles from Gobi Desert sand storms that turn the surface of the water golden...

. It was built from 1981 to 1986, with the resources of the whole country directed to this main construction project. The stated goal of the West Sea Dam was:

• The raising of the water level in the Taedong River and increased ship traffic;
• The prevention of seawater
  Seawater
  Seawater is water from a sea or ocean. On average, seawater in the world's oceans has a salinity of about 3.5% . This means that every kilogram of seawater has approximately of dissolved salts . The average density of seawater at the ocean surface is 1.025 g/ml...
  
   intrusion into the fresh water
  Fresh Water
  Fresh Water is the debut album by Australian rock and blues singer Alison McCallum, released in 1972. Rare for an Australian artist at the time, it came in a gatefold sleeve...
  
  , thus solving the water supply problem;
• The irrigation of additional land, enlarging the arable territory of the region.

Foreign critics claim raising the Taedong river level has led to the loss of valuable farmland, contributing to North Korean famine

North Korean famine

'The North Korean famine was a famine in North Korea which began in the early 1990s...

.

The dam is considered a major accomplishment of North Korea. It is a commonly seen backdrop for North Korean television news broadcasts on KCNA

Korean Central News Agency

The Korean Central News Agency is the state news agency of North Korea and has existed since December 5, 1946. KCNA is headquartered in the capital city of Pyongyang...

, and is a stop for international tourists.

The locks are at geographical coordinates 38°41′N 125°10′E.

The dam's estimated total cost was $4 billion (US).Oh, Kong Dan & Ralph C. Hassig. North Korea Through the Looking Glass, Brookings Institution Press, 2000, p53