The Bostalsee is a

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

in the municipality of Nohfelden in the northern

Saarland Saarland (, ; ) is a state of Germany in the southwest of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the smallest in ...

. It was created in 1979. The

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aqua ...

has a length of 500 metres. The lake is almost exclusively used for recreation. The hydropower from the stored water has been used since the end of 2013 to a small extent to generate electricity, especially to light the circular walk around the lake in winter. The southwestern part of the lake has been designated as a nature reserve.

Construction

This major tourist project was initiated in the early 1970s by the head of the county council of St. Wendel, Werner Zeyer, who later became the minister president of the Saarland. The long term aim was to strengthen the tourist infrastructure in the county of St. Wendel in order to raise the number of tourists. In addition, the new waterbody was intended to extend the local recreation facilities and improve the ecology.

Basic data

The lake has a surface area of 120 ha (1.2 km²), a volume of 8 million m³ and maximum depth of 18 metres. It lies at a height of about within the Saar-Hunsrück Nature Park near . It is thus the largest artificial body of water used for recreation in southwest Germany. The lakeside villages are Bosen, Eckelhausen, Gonnesweiler and Neunkirchen/Nahe, and the Bostalsee Leisure Centre is run by the county. The dam impounds the waters of the Bos and the Dämelbach.

Gallery

File:Kornbrust Liebeskanzel.JPG, Leo Kornbrust: ''Liebesthron'' on the circular walk File:Bostalsee 2010Requiem-für-die-Juden Seliger.JPG, Stone sculpture on the circular walk ''Requiem für die Juden'' by Shlomo Selinger File:BostalseeSolarkat.jpg, Former solar-powered catamaran (meanwhile there is a smaller passenger boat on the Bostalsee) File:Bostalsee.JPG, Beach on the Bostalsee File:Bostalsee Dämmerung.jpg, Dusk at the Bostalsee, 2008 File:Bostalsee.jpg, The Bostalsee seen from the north File:Bostalsee 3.JPG, Northwestern shore and sailing boat base File:Bostalsee 7 2011-10 Wohnblock.JPG, House in the holiday park File:Bostalsee 2.jpg, View of the lake File:20150524 Blick ins NSG Bostalsee IMG 4685 by sebaso.jpg, View of the nature reserve File:Busy Bostalsee 1982.jpg, A busy Summer day in 1982. File:Bostalsee Sunset.jpg, Sunset 1982. File:Windsurfing in Bostalsee 1982.jpg, Windsurfing 1982.

Literature

Literatur zum Bostalsee in der SULB

Annotations

External links

Freizeitzentrum Bostalsee und Tourist-Information Sankt Wendeler Land

Dokumentation von Zustand und Entwicklung der wichtigsten Seen Deutschlands der TU Cottbus, Teil 9: Nordrhein-Westfalen, Rheinland-Pfalz und Saarland
(PDF-Datei; 562 kB) {{Authority control Reservoirs in Saarland Nature reserves in Germany Dams in Saarland Naheland RBostalsee 1970s architecture Sankt Wendel (district)