Amir Kabir dam (), also known as Karaj dam (), is a dam on the Karaj River in the Central Alborz mountain range of northern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. It is located northwest of

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

and north of

Karaj Karaj (; ) is a List of cities in Iran by province, city in the Central District (Karaj County), Central District of Karaj County, Alborz province, Alborz province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. Earl ...

. The dam was constructed on the Karaj River, and was the first multi-purpose dam in Iran.

Construction

The initial studies for Amir Kabir Dam took 22 years until 1956 when formal proceedings began and the dam was constructed from 1957 to 1961 by Morrison-Knudsen Co. From 1950 Khalil Taleghani took part in the construction process. Varian village was originally located on the bed of the Amir Kabir Dam and beside the Karaj River. Following the dam's construction, the village was relocated to higher grounds. This made the village only accessible by waterway.

Specifications

The ecliptic concrete structure is high, with length on bottom and on top and its watershed is long.Amirkabir Dam Inaugurated
/ref> The average annual water inflow to its reservoir is 472 million cubic meters. The total capacity of the dam's reservoir is 202 million cubic meters. The bottom elevation of reservoir and normal water surface elevation of reservoir are and respectively.

Purpose

The Amir Kabir Dam was built as a multi-purpose dam to provide tap water for

alongside agricultural development in

. It supplies the irrigation demand of over of farm land near Karaj. The power plant has been connected to the national electricity network for over 46 years and has a capacity of 90 megawatts. The lake behind the dam is a touristic attraction while being a natural habitat for rainbow trout. With its sailing and water-skiing facilities, the dam is a popular weekend summer resort.

Gallery

File:IranKarajStausee1.jpg, The structure of the dam File:Chalus road - ninara 01.jpg, Chalus Road beside dam File:AmirKabirDam02.jpg, The dam's lake File:Amir Kabir Dam.jpg, The structure of the dam File:Aderan Karaj.jpg, Karaj River in Adaran File:Chalous road in autumn - panoramio.jpg, Karaj River File:AmirKabirDam04.jpg, Karaj dam or Amir Kabir dam File:Karaj dam - panoramio (3).jpg, Chalus Road beside the dam File:Varyan.jpg, Varian Village behind the dam's lake File:10-RIAL-REV-TAMAMROKH-KE.jpg, Amir Kabir dam on the reverse of a 1961 10 Iranian rial banknote File:Banknote of shah - 20 rials (rear).jpg, Amir Kabir dam on the reverse of a 1974 20 Iranian rial banknote

References

External links