Dospat Reservoir

About

Dospat Reservoir (Bulgarian) is situated in the western part of the Rhodope Mountains, Bulgaria. The reservoir (formed by a dam in the town of Dospat, 82 km (51 mi) west of Smolyan) stretches nearly 19 km (12 mi) northwest to the city of Sarnitsa. At 1,200 m (3, 900 ft) above the sea level, it is one of the highest dams in Bulgaria in terms of altitude, and, with its 22 km2 (8.5 mi2) of water area, the second largest in capacity. It is fed by the Dospat River. The dam, which creates the lake, is built for hydroelectricity generation as part of the Dospat–Vacha Hydropower Cascade (500.2 MW). There is no hydroelectric power plant (HPP) installed at the dam but rather the water is taken to the Teshel HPP and then further down the Devin HPP and the Vacha River with its power plants, dams and reservoirs (Tsankov Kamak HPP, Vacha Reservoir, Krichim Reservoir, Vacha II HPP, Krichim HPP and Vacha I HPP). Besides that, a minimum of 0.15 m3/s (0.20 cu yd/s) is constantly released for sanitation of the Dospat River riverbed where the average input to the reservoir is 7.9 m3/s (10.3 cu yd/s). The flora and fauna around the reservoir are diverse and the geography offers breathtaking sights. Old coniferous forests surround the lake. On the northern bank, the town of Sarnitsa and Krushata neighborhood are located. The terrain is hilly, with meadows and arable land available, use

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