The classification of a reservoir by volume is not as straightforward as it may seem. As the name implies, water is held in reserve by a reservoir so it can serve a purpose. For example, in Thailand, reservoirs tend to store water from the wet season to prevent flooding, then release it during the dry season for farmers to grow rice. For this type of reservoir, almost the entire volume of the reservoir functions for the purpose it was built. Hydroelectric power generation, on the other hand, requires many dams to build up a large volume before operation can begin. For this type of reservoir only a small portion of the water held behind the dam is useful. Therefore, knowing the purpose for which a reservoir has been constructed, and knowing how much water can be used for that purpose, helps determine how much water is in possible reserve.
Terminology The following terms are used in connection with the volume of reservoirs:
Expanded versus artificial lakes The list below largely ignores many natural lakes that have been augmented with the addition of a relatively minor dam. For example, a small dam, two hydroelectric plants, and locks on the outlet of Lake Superior make it possible to artificially control the lake level. Certainly, the great majority of the lake is natural. However, the control of water that can be held in reserve means a portion of the vast lake functions as a reservoir.
Recognition of lakes like Lake Superior greatly changes the list below. For example, the Francis H. Clergue Generating Station and Saint Marys Falls Hydropower Plant, which are both on the lake's outlet, operate with just 5.9 meters total head. This is short compared to other dams. However, when viewed against the 81,200 km2 area of the lake, even a small range in Lake Superior's water level means its active volume is greater than the largest nominal in the table below.
List
Rank Reservoir Dam River Country Year Nominal volume km3 1 Lake KaribaKariba DamZambezi River and 1959 180.6 , 160.3 2 Bratsk ReservoirBratsk DamAngara River 1964 169 , 169.3 3 Lake VoltaAkosombo DamVolta River 1965 150 , 148 4 Manicouagan ReservoirDaniel-Johnson DamManicouagan River 1968 141.85 , 141.7 5 Guri ReservoirGuri DamCaroní River 1986 135 6 Lake NasserAswan High DamNile River and 1971 132 7 Nigat LakeGrand Ethiopian Renaissance DamBlue Nile River 2023 79 8 Williston LakeW. A. C. Bennett DamPeace River 1967 74.3 9 Krasnoyarsk Reservoir Krasnoyarsk DamYenisei River 1967 73.3 10 Zeya ReservoirZeya Hydroelectric Station (ru) Zeya River 1978 68.4 11 Robert-Bourassa ReservoirRobert-Bourassa generating station La Grande River 1981 61.71 12 La Grande-3 Nord Reservoir La Grande-3 generating stationLa Grande River 1981 60.02 13 Ust-Ilimsk ReservoirUst-Ilimsk DamAngara River 1977 59.3 14 Boguchany ReservoirBoguchany DamAngara River 2012 58.2 15 Kuybyshev ReservoirZhiguli Hydroelectric StationVolga River 1955 58 16 Cahora BassaCahora Bassa DamZambezi River 1974 55.8 17 Serra da Mesa ReservoirSerra da Mesa DamTocantins River 1998 54.4 18 Caniapiscau ReservoirBrisay generating stationCaniapiscau River 1981 53.8 19 Pati–Chapetón (proposal) Paraná River ? 53.7 20 Bukhtarma Reservoir Bukhtarma Hydroelectric Power PlantIrtysh River 1967 53 21 Danjiangkou ReservoirDanjiangkou DamHan River (Yangtze River tributary) 1962 51.6 22 Atatürk ReservoirAtatürk DamEuphrates 1992 48.7 23 Irkutsk ReservoirIrkutsk DamAngara River 1956 46 24 Lago TucuruíTucuruí DamTocantins River 1984 45.54 25 Los Barreales Lake Loma de la Lata Dam (Cerros Colorados Complex)Neuquén River 1973 27.7 26 Mari Menuco reservoir Planicie Banderita hydroelectric power plant (Cerros Colorados Complex) Neuquén River 1979 13.8 27 Three Gorges ReservoirThree Gorges DamYangtze River 2009 39.3 28 Lake MeadHoover DamColorado River 1936 37.3 30 Roseires ReservoirRoseires DamBlue Nile 1966 36.3 31 Vilyuy Reservoir (ru) Vilyuy Dam (ru) Vilyuy River 1967 35.9 32 Lake PowellGlen Canyon DamColorado River 1964 35.55 33 Lake ArgyleLake Argyle DamOrd River 1971 35 Harrison, Rod; Ernie James; Chris Sully; Bill Classon; Joy Eckermann (2008). Queensland Dams. Bayswater, Victoria: Australian Fishing Network. pp. 60–61. ISBN 978-1-86513-134-4. Kay, B. (2006). Water Resources: Health, Environment and Development. CRC Press. p. 108. ISBN 9780203027851. Retrieved 2014-12-13. 34 Nechako ReservoirKenney DamNechako–Kemano 1966 35 35 Sobradinho ReservoirSobradinho DamSão Francisco River 1979 34.1 36 Smallwood ReservoirChurchill FallsChurchill River 1971 32.64 37 Jenpeg DamLake Winnipeg outlet 1975 31.79 38 Keban Dam LakeKeban DamEuphrates 1971 31.5 39 Volgograd ReservoirVolga Hydroelectric StationVolga River 1958 31.5 40 Sayano-Shushenskoye Reservoir (ru) Sayano-Shushenskaya DamYenisei River 1990 31.3 41 Lake SakakaweaGarrison DamMissouri River 1953 30.22 42 Lake KossouKossou DamBandama River 1961 30 43 Iroquois DamSt. Lawrence River 1958 29.96 44 Lake OaheOahe DamMissouri River 1966 29.11 45 Lake Itaipu (pt) Itaipu DamParaná River and 1983 29 Compiles a database of world dams using the International Commission on Large Dams database. 46 Rybinsk ReservoirRybinsk DamVolga River 1941-1947 25.4 47 Fort Peck LakeFort Peck DamMissouri River 1930 23.1 47 La-Grande 4 ReservoirLa Grande-4 generating stationLa Grande River 1984 19.5 48 Kakhovka ReservoirKakhovka DamDnieper River 1956 0 (Previously 18.2) 49 Sanmenxia ReservoirSanmenxia DamYellow River 1962 16.2 50 Mingachevir reservoirMingachevir DamKura River 1953 15.73 51 Merowe ReservoirMerowe DamNile River 2009 12.50
See also List of reservoirs by surface area List of conventional hydroelectric power stations List of largest reservoirs in the United States
References