Nant-y-moch Reservoir () is situated in the

Cambrian Mountains The Cambrian Mountains (, in a narrower sense: ''Elenydd'') are a series of mountain ranges in Wales. The term ''Cambrian Mountains'' used to apply to most of the upland of Wales, and comes from the country's Latin name . Since the 1950s, it ...

in northern

Ceredigion Ceredigion (), historically Cardiganshire (, ), is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the West Wales, west of Wales. It borders Gwynedd across the River Dyfi, Dyfi estuary to the north, Powys to the east, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire t ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, near

Pumlumon Plynlimon, or Pumlumon in Welsh (also historically anglicised as Plinlimon, Plynlymmon or Plinlimmon), is the highest point of the Cambrian Mountains in Wales (taking a restricted definition of the Cambrian Mountains, excluding Snowd ...

. The

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 ...

which flooded a part of the valley of the

River Rheidol Afon Rheidol (; also known as the River Rheidol) is a river in Ceredigion, Wales, in length. The source is Plynlimon. Receiving an average annual rainfall of , Plynlimon is also the source of both the Wye and the Severn. Geography and geolog ...

and its headwaters derives its name from a stream, the Nant-y-moch (in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

= ''the pigs stream,''), which formerly flowed into the

at this spot. 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 ...

is about three miles north of the village of

Ponterwyd Ponterwyd () is a village in Ceredigion, Wales. It lies in the Cambrian Mountains of Mid Wales, approximately east of Aberystwyth on the A44 road. History At the village's heart lies (English: ''The Old Bridge''), a steep single-arch late 1 ...

. The reservoir forms part of the Cwm Rheidol

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 scheme and the

headwaters The headwater of a river or stream is the geographical point of its beginning, specifically where surface runoff water begins to accumulate into a flowing channel of water. A river or stream into which one or many tributary rivers or streams flo ...

of the reservoir include the source of the River Rheidol. The Nant-y-moch component of the hydroelectric scheme has an installed capacity of 13 MW generated as the water from Nant-y-moch enters

Dinas Reservoir Dinas may refer to: Places England * Dinas, an area of Padstow, Cornwall * Castle an Dinas, St Columb Major, an Iron Age hillfort at the summit of Castle Downs, Cornwall * Treryn Dinas, a headland near Treen, on the Penwith peninsula, Cornwal ...

.The Rheidol hydro-electric scheme
/ref>

History

Nant-y-moch Reservoir was created in 1964. The construction of the dam flooded the valley north of it, which included the hamlet of Nant-y-moch. The contents of the graveyard which was to be submerged were relocated to the chapel at

, and a number of

cairn A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...

s were painstakingly moved, some of which dated back as far as the

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

References

External links

High definition timelapse video of Nant y Moch dam and reservoir

Panoramic view of Nant y Moch from Drosgol peak
{{authority control Elenydd Reservoirs in Wales Buildings and structures in Ceredigion Lakes of Ceredigion Dams in Wales