Nurek Reservoir

a reservoir formed by the dam of the Nurek Hydroelectric Power Plant on the Vakhsh River in the Tadzhik SSR. Filling of the reservoir began in 1972. Area, 98 sq km; volume, 10.5 cu km; length, 70 km; maximum width, 1 km; average depth, 107 m. The level of the reservoir fluctuates within a range of 53 m. It provides seasonal regulation of the water flow. Regulation of the flow of the Vakhsh and a 300-m rise in the water level will make possible additional irrigation of about 1 million hectares of fertile land in the Karshi and Kzyl-Kum steppes and on the Dangara Plateau, and also improvement of navigation conditions on the lower Vakhsh and the Amu Darya.