2023-09-24 12:05:57
The water level at Andong Dam in Gyeongbuk rose to 158.22m for the second time in history. The photo shows the water intake tower near the Andong Dam. /Reporter Kwon Gwang-soon
Andong Dam in Gyeongsangbuk-do recorded the second highest water storage rate since the dam was built in 1976. It is the second highest figure after Typhoon Rusa in 2002.
According to the Korea Water Resources Corporation’s Andong branch, Andong Dam, which can store a total of 1.25 billion tons of water up to 161.7 meters above sea level, recorded the second-highest water retention rate in history at 1.12 billion tons (88.3%) as of the 24th. The water level also reached 158.22m, more than 8m higher than the average of 150m in previous years. The lowest water level this year was 451 million tons at 141.41 m above sea level as of June 25, with water storage more than doubling in just three months. The Korea Water Resources Corporation said, “The reason for raising the current water level is to prepare for next year’s drought.”
The highest water level since the dam was built was during Typhoon Rusa in 2002. At that time, when the water rose to 159.91 m above sea level, the Korea Water Resources Corporation opened the floodgates to control the situation.
If the dam rises to full water level, farmers and fishermen living around the dam may be at risk. Additionally, when water enters forest areas, various suspended solids and nutrients such as phosphorus and nitric acid flow into the lake, causing green algae.
There are a total of 47 farm households living in the Andong Dam waterfront area, including Waryong-myeon. The farmhouse closest to the lake is located at 159m above sea level. If the water level rises just 1m above the current level, flooding will be inevitable.
Some damage also occurred. Andongho fisherman Ji Jun-pyo (45) suffered flooding damage to the warehouse next to his house due to rising water overnight. Mr. Ji said, “I am worried about the lake being polluted because all of the 160 liters of ship fuel stored in the warehouse has floated away.”
Jang Won-ho (58), a resident of Nosan-ri, Immyeon, said, “The water has risen to the halfway point of the mountain, and the valleys of the dam are filled with dead trees and other floating debris, and there is even a bad smell.” He added, “They say this is to prepare for drought, but this is too bad.”
As farm roads and electric poles near a farm in Nosan-ri, Imha-myeon, Andong-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do, were flooded, Andong City mobilized heavy equipment to carry out restoration work on the afternoon of the 24th. /Reporter Kwon Gwang-soon
As civil complaints continued, Andong City took emergency measures, such as securing bypass farm roads by mobilizing heavy equipment such as excavators to the area.
An employee of the Korea Water Resources Corporation said, “It is not currently flood season, so there is no risk of flooding in the downstream area of the Nakdong River, but maintaining the full water level without draining the water seems to be a problem with the dam’s hydrological management.”
In response, the Korea Water Resources Corporation switched from dam discharge at the level of maintaining existing rivers to power generation discharge starting this afternoon. Instead of reducing the discharge from the neighboring Imha Dam, the plan is to lower the water level by increasing the discharge from Andong Dam.
An official from the Korea Water Resources Corporation’s Andong Area Management Team said, “This situation seems to have occurred because so much water was flowing into the dam from upstream,” and added, “We plan to continue power generation and release water to lower the dam water level and repair flood damage to the access roads to farmland.”
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