MAJOR BENEFITS OF DAM CONSTRUCTION IN IRAN -TWO CASE STUDIES : SATARKHAN (AHAR) AND SHAHID RAJAEE (TAJAN) PROJECTS

摘要

In countries such as Iran, which are principally situated in the arid or semi-arid regions, advantages of dam construction far outweighs its probable negative effects which may seem to have on the immediate surrounding areas. Ahar's Satarkhan dam is located in East Azarbaijan province about 750 km NW of Tehran, 120 km N.E. of Tabriz and 15 km west of the city of Ahar. To anyone familiar with life style of indigenous people of Ahar and natural conditions that those people live under, benefits resulting from the existence of this dam, in the area, is clearly evident. Shahid Rajaee Dam is a 138 m high double curvature concrete arch, located on Tajan river in the North of Iran, 41 km South of Sari, the capital of Mazandaran province. Construction of this dam was completed in 1997. The present paper deals with the benefits of construction of above mentioned projects with regard to flood control, regulation of river flow for irrigation, hydroelectric generation, supply of potable water, and preservation of groundwater level in the agricultural lands.