Puclaro Dam

Coordinates: 30°01′S 70°49′W / 30.01°S 70.82°W / -30.01; -70.82
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Puclaro
The dam which forms the lake is visible in the background
Puclaro is located in Coquimbo Region
Puclaro
Puclaro
Coordinates30°01′S 70°49′W / 30.01°S 70.82°W / -30.01; -70.82
Typereservoir
Primary inflowsElqui River
Primary outflowsElqui River
Basin countriesChile
Max. length5.95 km (3.70 mi)
Surface area760 ha (1,900 acres)
Max. depth83 m (272 ft)
Water volume4.63×10^6 m3 (3,750 acre⋅ft)
Surface elevation435 m (1,427 ft)
DamPuclaro Dam

Puclaro is an artificial lake created by a dam on the Elqui River, 40 km east of the city of La Serena, Coquimbo Region and 500 km north of Santiago. Regular strong winds make the lake a popular place for kitesurfing.[1]

Its purpose is to improve the irrigation of 21,000 ha of farmland in the Elqui valley.[2]

Dam[edit]

Puclaro Dam is an 83 m tall and 640 m long concrete face gravel fill dam with a crest altitude of 435 m. The volume of the dam is 4,630,000 m³. The dam features a spillway over the dam (maximum discharge 3,800 m³/s). The upstream concrete face varies in thickness from 0.45 m to 0.30 m.[2]

Puclaro dam is founded on very pervious alluvial foundations more than 100 m deep.[2]

References[edit]

  1. ^ surfspot.de: Spotinfos Puclaro (Chile) Archived 2006-02-21 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b c "Design and construction of Chile's Puclaro dam". International Water Power & Dam Construction. 1999-09-10. Retrieved 2015-04-16.

External links[edit]