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Reservoirs of Crimea

The reservoirs of Crimea are a network of artificial water bodies (natural-flow and off-channel) created to accumulate river runoff and Dnieper water in order to supply drinking and household water to the peninsula's cities and to irrigate its agricultural lands. As of January 2014, 23 reservoirs with a total capacity of almost 400 million m³ were operating in Crimea, of which more than 80% by volume of accumulated water was constructed within the Ukrainian SSR and independent Ukraine.

Overview

For nearly two centuries after the russian empire annexed the Crimean Khanate (from 1783–1788), the state authorities allocated no funds for land reclamation, river channel management, or runoff regulation in the Piedmont. During spring and summer floods, the rivers turned into destructive torrents that destroyed villages, bridges, orchards, and vineyards.

The idea of regulating runoff through the construction of reservoirs began to be implemented only at the end of the 1920s. In the pre-war period and the first post-war years (up to 1954), only 5 reservoirs were built in Crimea (Alminske, Ayanske, Bakhchysarai, Taihanske, and Leninske/Yuzmakske) with a total capacity of about 40 million m³.

The main development of hydraulic infrastructure took place after the transfer of Crimea Oblast to Ukraine in 1954. The largest natural-flow reservoirs were built (Simferopol, Chornorichenske, Partyzanske, Zahirske, Bilohirske, Shchaslyvenske), as well as an extensive network of off-channel reservoirs in the steppe Crimea in connection with the commissioning of the North Crimean Canal.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Pre-war and early reservoirs (1929–1938):
  • Alminske Reservoir: The oldest large industrial reservoir on the Alma River, built in 1929 (first stage) and 1934 (second stage), with a capacity of 6.2 million m³.
  • Ayanske Reservoir: Built in 1933–1936 in the Piedmont on the Ayan River (capacity of over 4 million m³) to supply water to the city of Simferopol.
  • Bakhchysarai Reservoir: Commissioned in 1935 in the Ehyz-Oba ravine (fed by the water of the Kacha River, capacity of almost 7 million m³).
  • Taihanske Reservoir: Built in 1938 near Karasubazar (Bilohirsk) on the Biyuk-Karasu River (capacity 13.8 million m³) for irrigating orchards and vegetable gardens.
  • Natural-flow reservoirs of the Ukrainian era (after 1954):
  • Simferopol Reservoir: Built in 1956 on the Salhyr River (capacity 36 million m³). Provided drinking water to the regional center and feeds the Salhyr irrigation system (over 20,000 ha).
  • Chornorichenske Reservoir: Commissioned in 1956 in the Baidar Valley on the Chorna River (capacity 64.2 million m³). Solved the problem of drinking water supply for Sevastopol and the Black Sea Fleet.
  • Staryi Krym Reservoir: Built in 1957 on the Churyuk-Su River (capacity 3.2 million m³).
  • Shchaslyvenske and Zahirske Reservoirs: Built in 1964 (11.8 million m³) and 1980 (27.85 million m³), respectively, in the upper reaches of the Belbek and Kacha rivers. They provide water supply to Yalta through a tunnel under the Main Ridge of the Crimean Mountains and feed the Kacha irrigation system.
  • Partyzanske Reservoir: Built in 1966 on the Alma River (capacity 34.4 million m³) for water supply to Sevastopol and Simferopol.
  • Bilohirske Reservoir: Built in 1972 on the Biyuk-Karasu River (capacity 23.3 million m³) next to the Taihanske Reservoir, securing water for the entire Bilohirsk district.
  • Izobilnenske and Kutuzovske Reservoirs: Built in the southern coastal zone on the Ulu-Uzen (13.25 million m³) and Demerdzhi rivers (1986) to supply Alushta.
  • Off-channel reservoirs of the North Crimean Canal:
  • A network of 8 off-channel reservoirs with a total capacity of 146.35 million m³ in the steppe and eastern parts of the peninsula: Zelenoiarske, Mizhhirne, Samarlinske, Kerch (Stantsiine), Sokolske, Feodosia, Frontove, Yuzmakske (Leninske).
  • After russia's occupation of Crimea in 2014 and the halt of Dnieper water supply, these reservoirs experienced shallowing, drying up, and ecological degradation.