Mosvatnet is a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much lar ...

in the municipality of

Stavanger Stavanger (, , US usually , ) is a city and municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the administrative center of Rogaland county. T ...

Rogaland Rogaland () is a county in Western Norway, bordering the North Sea to the west and the counties of Vestland to the north, Vestfold og Telemark to the east and Agder to the east and southeast. In 2020, it had a population of 479,892. The admin ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The lake lies just west of the centre of the city of Stavanger in the

Eiganes og Våland Eiganes og Våland is a borough of the city of Stavanger which lies in the southwestern part of the large municipality of Stavanger in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located just west of the city centre, north of the lake Mosvatnet, west of the ...

borough. At , it is the third largest lake in the city of Stavanger after Hålandsvatnet and Stora Stokkavatnet. The lake reaches a maximum depth of and it lies at an elevation of above sea level. The lake flows out through a small stream that runs through underground culverts to the Breiavatnet lake before emptying into the nearby Byfjorden.

Reservoir

Mosvatnet was Stavanger's main water source between 1863 and 1931. The Great Fire of Holmen in Stavanger in 1860 showed that the city had a weak water supply. In 1863, the city initiated the building of a new

waterworks Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. The ...

at Mosvatnet that both would give residents proper drinking water and better access to water for fire crews. A pump house was erected and water pipes were laid along the road Madlaveien (Rv 509). The water level of the pond was increased significantly, and several small islets and rocks disappeared. The city took over several properties along the lake to prevent contamination of drinking water source and it made the surrounding areas into parkland. After a short time it was realized that Mosvatnet did not have enough capacity to supply the growing city with drinking water in the long term. In 1903, the city of Stavanger bought water rights for the Stora Stokkavatnet lake and in 1930 that lake became the city's new water

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including control ...

References

Stavanger Lakes of Rogaland {{Rogaland-geo-stub

Reservoir

See also

References