Category: 4. Irrigation & Water Supply Engineering

International standards define large dams as greater than 15-20 meters and height of large dams as greater than 150-250 meters. The tallest dam in the world is the 300-meter-high Norek Dam in Tajikistan.

Dams can also be formed by human agency, natural causes, or the intervention of wildlife such as beavers. Man-made dams are generally classified according to their size or height and the intended purpose or structure.

Early construction of dams took place in Mesopotamia and the Middle East. Dams were used to control water levels, as Mesopotamian weather affected the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and could be quite unpredictable. The oldest dam is located in Java, Jordan, 100 km northeast of the capital Amman. The ancient Egyptian Sadd al-Kaffarah, in Wadi…

A dam is a barrier that blocks water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates, levees, and dikes are used to regulate or prevent the flow of water to specific land areas.

The following are the main classes of irrigation: Drip Irrigation: Drip irrigation is a type of irrigation in which available irrigation water is supplied at such a level that it is carried to the ground by gravity flow.Flow irrigation may be further divided into perennial irrigation system and inundation or flood irrigation system. In perennial…

Apart from increasing food production, irrigation has many indirect benefits or advantages such as: Protection from famineCultivation of cash cropsIncrease in wealth of the countryIncreasing the prosperity of the peopleHydropower generationDomestic and industrial water supplyInland NavigationCanal GardensImprovement of underground water storageGeneral development of the countryStorage of water for various purposes