The Chaki Wardak Dam ( ps, چک وردګ برېښناکوټ), or simply the Chak Dam ( ps, چک برېښناکوټ), is a dam near the Chak district center in
Chaki Wardak District
Chak Wardak ( prs, چک وردک, also known as Chak) is a district in the south of Wardak Province, Afghanistan. Its population was estimated at 83,376 in 2005, the last year for which figures are available. The district centre is the village of ...
,
Wardak Province
Maidan Wardak (Pashto: ; Dari: ), also called Wardag or Wardak, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the central region of Afghanistan. It is divided into eight districts and has a population of approximately 500,00 The capital ...
,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. It was originally built by Germans in 1938, making it the oldest major dam in the country. It regulates flow of the
Logar River
The Logar River (also Lowgar) is a river of Afghanistan. It gives the name to the Logar Valley and Logar Province. In Maidan Wardak Province where the river originates, it is called Chak River. The Chaki Wardak Dam is built on the river in Chaki ...
, helping provide irrigation water in Chak Valley.
Hydropower
Wardak used to have a significant energy-generating capacity with the dam in Chaki Wardak. The
four turbines could provide electricity to Wardak, and parts of
Kabul
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
, Logar and
Ghazni
Ghazni ( prs, غزنی, ps, غزني), historically known as Ghaznain () or Ghazna (), also transliterated as Ghuznee, and anciently known as Alexandria in Opiana ( gr, Αλεξάνδρεια Ωπιανή), is a city in southeastern Afghanistan ...
provinces.
Maintenance
In May 2005 the Chaki Wardak Dam nearly overflowed as its main and emergency floodgates were rusted shut after six years of dry weather. The
UN Development Programme
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human deve ...
, the
Afghanistan Emergency Trust Fund, and the Ministry of Energy and Water, took emergency action to address the threat. The co-operative effort saw a rapid response through immediate financing, planning and implementation of a 16-metre ancillary gate that could hold the water while the rusted gates were lifted and repaired.
The repairs were successful at a reported cost of US$18,000 allowing evacuated residents to return to their homes in the valley.
See also
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List of dams and reservoirs in Afghanistan
Dams and reservoirs in Afghanistan are used for irrigation, water supply, hydro-electric power generation or combination of these. Below are a map and a chart showing some of Afghanistan's dams and reservoirs.
Location map of major reservoirs an ...
*
Water supply in Afghanistan
Water supply in Afghanistan is managed by the National Water Affairs Regulation Authority (NWARA), which is based in Kabul, Afghanistan. The nation's water supply is characterized by a number of achievements and challenges. Among the achievements ...
References
External links
Afghanistan: UNDP assists in flood prevention at Chak-e Wardak Dam
{{Dams and reservoirs in Afghanistan
Dams in Afghanistan
River regulation in Afghanistan
Water supply and sanitation in Afghanistan
Dams completed in 1938
1938 establishments in Afghanistan