Pampalarama Dam

Dam in La Paz, Bolivia
Pampalarama Dam is located in Bolivia
Pampalarama Dam
Location of Pampalarama Dam in Bolivia
Official namePampalarama DamCountryBoliviaLocationLa Paz, BoliviaPurposeDrinking waterStatusOperationalConstruction beganJuly 14, 2017Opening dateApril 4, 2019Owner(s)Government of Bolivia
Water and Sanitation Social Public EnterpriseDam and spillwaysType of damReinforced concreteImpoundsKhaluyo RiverHeight36 m (118 ft)Length307 m (1,007 ft)ReservoirTotal capacity3,405,952 m3 (2,761 acre⋅ft)Surface area6.19 km2 (2 sq mi)Normal elevation763 m (2,503 ft)

The Pampalarama Dam, or also known as Uma Punku, is a dam located in the Department of La Paz in Bolivia, which supplies water to the historic center of the city of La Paz. The infrastructure has a height of 36 meters and a storage capacity of 3.4 million cubic meters of water. Its construction began on July 14, 2017, being inaugurated on April 4, 2019, during the third government of President Evo Morales Ayma.[1][2]

History

Drinking water shortages in La Paz and El Alto

The idea of the construction of the Pampalarama dam arises as a result of the urgent need of the cities of La Paz and El Alto to have access to the elemental and vital liquid, since it is worth remembering that in the month of November 2016, both cities they suffered the terrible scarcity of water for human consumption, this due to the low amount of said elemental liquid in the dams.[3]

On July 16, 2017, after inaugurating the Alto Hampaturi Dam, the President of Bolivia Evo Morales Ayma publicly announced the construction of another 3 more dams for the Department of La Paz, with the aim of guaranteeing water to the main cities.[3]

The start of the works for the construction of the Pampalarama dam began in July 2017 and it took around 21 months to finish building said infrastructure, finally being inaugurated on April 4, 2019, by President Evo Morales Ayma in an act public.[4][5]

Technical data

The Pampalarama dam has a storage capacity of 3.4 million cubic meters and is built of reinforced concrete with a height of 36 meters and a length of 307 meters, its surface area is 6.19 square kilometers. The construction of the work had a cost of 63.1 million bolivianos (around 9.1 million dollars) and was financed through the National Productive and Social Investment Fund. The dam also has a meteorological station and state-of-the-art measuring instruments that measure the water level, pressure, and detect movement inside the dam, all subject to environmental mitigation measures.[6]

See also

  • Condoriri Dam

References

  1. ^ "President Evo Morales hands over the "Pampalarama" dam in Hampaturi, a work that required Bs 63 million". presidencia.gob.bo (in Spanish). 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  2. ^ "President Evo Morales hands over the Pampalarama dam". urgente.bo (in Spanish). 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  3. ^ a b "The Bolivian Government announces three dams for La Paz". paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). 2017-07-13. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  4. ^ "Bolivian Government guarantees water to La Paz and El Alto with the construction of three dams". paginasiete.bo (in Spanish). 2018-07-10. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  5. ^ "Evo Morales hands over the Pampalarama dam to the center of the city of La Paz and 'releases' the Milluni dam to supply the city of El Alto". eju.tv (in Spanish). 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2022-10-04.
  6. ^ "President delivers Pampalarama dam that guarantees drinking water supply to La Paz". comunicacion.gob.bo (in Spanish). 2019-04-04. Retrieved 2022-10-04.