The Aslandağ Dam is a

gravity dam A gravity dam is a dam constructed from concrete or stone masonry and designed to hold back water by using only the weight of the material and its resistance against the foundation. Gravity dams are designed so that each section of the dam is ...

on the Bembo River (an eventual tributary of the

Great Zab The Great Zab or Upper Zab (; or ; ; ) is an approximately long river flowing through Turkey and Iraq. It rises in Turkey near Lake Van and joins the Tigris in Iraq south of Mosul. During its course, the river collects water from many tributar ...

) in

Şemdinli Şemdinli (, or ) is a town located in the Şemdinli District of Hakkari Province in Turkey and had a population of 18,220 in 2023. The current mayor is Tahir Saklı from the Justice and Development Party (AKP), elected in 2019. The town is ...

district of

Hakkâri Province Hakkâri Province (, ; ), is a province in the southeast of Turkey. The administrative centre is the city of Hakkâri. Its area is 7,095 km2, and its population is 287,625 (2023). The current Governor is Ali Çelik. The province encompasses ...

, southeast

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. Under contract from Turkey's

State Hydraulic Works The State Hydraulic Works () is a state agency, under the Ministry of Environment and Forestry of Turkey, responsible for the utilization of all the country's water resources. The institution's four major functions are energy, agriculture, servi ...

, Özdoğan Group began construction on the dam in 2008 and it was complete in 2012. In July 2012 suspected

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...

(PKK) militants set fire to equipment at the construction sites of the Aslandağ Dam and also the Beyyurdu Dam which is located downstream. The reported purpose of the dam is water storage and it can also support a

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

power station in the future. Another purpose of the dam which has been widely reported in the Turkish press is to reduce the freedom of movement of PKK militants. Blocking and flooding valleys in close proximity to the Iraq–Turkey border is expected to help curb cross-border PKK smuggling and deny caves in which ammunition can be stored. A total of 11 dams along the border; seven in

Şırnak Province Şırnak Province (, ) is a Provinces of Turkey, province in Turkey in the Southeastern Anatolia Region. Şırnak Province was created in 1990, with areas that were formerly part of the Siirt Province, Siirt, Hakkâri Province, Hakkâri and Mardin ...

and four in Hakkâri Province were implemented for this purpose. In Hakkâri are the Gölgeliyamaç (since cancelled) and

Çocuktepe Dam The Çocuktepe Dam is a gravity dam under construction on the Güzeldere River (a tributary of the Great Zab) in Çukurca district of Hakkâri Province, southeast Turkey. Under contract from Turkey's State Hydraulic Works, İnelsan İnşaat began c ...

s on the Güzeldere River and the Aslandağ and Beyyurdu Dams on the Bembo River. In Şırnak there are the

Silopi Dam The Silopi Dam is a gravity dam on the Hezil River about northeast of Silopi in Şırnak Province, southeast Turkey. Under contract from Turkey's State Hydraulic Works, İLCİ Holding A.Ş began construction on the dam in 2008 and it was complet ...

on the Hezil River and the

Şırnak Şırnak () is a city in Şırnak District and the capital of Şırnak Province in Turkey. The Ibrahim Khalil border crossing with Iraq is one of the main links of Turkey to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. The city is mainly populated by Kurds o ...

Uludere Uludere () is a town and the seat of the Uludere District in the Şırnak Province of Turkey. The town is populated by Kurds Kurds (), or the Kurdish people, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group from West Asia. They are indigenous ...

, Balli, Kavşaktepe, Musatepe and Çetintepe Dams on the Ortasu River.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aslandag Dam Dams in Hakkâri Province Gravity dams Dams completed in 2012 Dams in the Tigris River basin Roller-compacted concrete dams

See also

References