Chardara Reservoir

Chardara Reservoir

 

a reservoir formed by the dam of the Chardara Hydroengineering Complex on the Syr Darya River, in the Kazakh SSR and Uzbek SSR. Itself a part of the hydroengineering facilities of a hydroelectric power plant, the reservoir was filled between 1965 and 1968. It has an area of 900 sq km, a capacity of 5.7 cu km, and a length of 70 km. Spanning 20 km at its widest point, it has an average depth of 6.5 m. The reservoir was built to improve the supply of water to existing irrigation tracts, to eliminate flooding in the lower course of the Syr Darya, and to irrigate new lands. It has improved the navigability of the Syr Darya and has increased the power output of the Far-khad and Kairakkum hydroelectric power plants. Carp, pike perch, and pike are fished commercially on the reservoir.