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El Carrizal Dam
Dam in Mendoza / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The El Carrizal Dam (in Spanish, Embalse El Carrizal) is a dam on the upper-middle course of the Tunuyán River, in the center-north of the province of Mendoza, Argentina upstream from the city of Rivadavia. Its reservoir measures about 15 by 5 kilometres (9.3 mi × 3.1 mi), and its maximum water level stands at 785.5 metres (2,577 ft) above the sea, covering an area of 34.8 square kilometres (13.4 sq mi). It has a maximum volume of 462 million cubic metres (16.3×10^9 cu ft).[1]
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El Carrizal Dam | |
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![]() Spillway and reservoir | |
Country | Argentina |
Location | Mendoza |
Coordinates | 33°18′0″S 68°43′15″W |
Purpose | Power, irrigation |
Status | Operational |
Construction began | 1965 |
Opening date | 1971 |
Dam and spillways | |
Type of dam | Embankment, earth and rock-fill |
Impounds | Tunuyán River |
Height | 46 m (151 ft) |
Length | 2,113 m (6,932 ft) |
Width (crest) | 10 m (33 ft) |
Reservoir | |
Total capacity | 462,000,000 m3 (375,000 acre⋅ft) |
Surface area | 34.8 km2 (13.4 sq mi) |
Turbines | 2 x 8.5 MW Francis-type |
Installed capacity | 17 MW |
Annual generation | 83 Mio. kWh |
The dam is used to regulate the flow of the Tunuyán River, which comes from glacial sources in the Andes, and to irrigate the otherwise arid region. The reservoir is a tourist attraction and is employed for fishing, windsurfing, sailing, etc., while its shores feature camping sites and other lodging facilities.
The waters of the dam feed a hydroelectric power station, which was built in 1971 and has an installed power generation capacity of 17 megawatts (23,000 hp).[1]