Buan Dam
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LocationGunmak-gil Byeonsan-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do
- CategoryTour
- Korean부안 댐
- Chinese扶安-
- FieldPolitics, Economy and Society / Economy & Industry
- Contents TypePlace Name / Facility
- Current LocationGunmak-gil Byeonsan-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do
- Definition
- A multipurpose dam, located in Junggye-ri, Byeonsan-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do.
- Summary
- Buan Dam, the only dam in Korea located in a national park, is a multipurpose dam built to supply water, control flooding, and generate hydroelectric power. As the focus of the national policy on water resources has been switched from the development of large dams to medium and small ones, Buan Dam was Korea’s first medium-sized dam. The construction of Buan Dam is an exemplary case of solving the problems of a local community which only had a small nearby stream and thus did not receive the benefits of the dam because the project was focused on the construction of a large, multi-purpose dam.
- Background of Construction
- Buan Dam was established to meet the water requirements of households, industry, and agriculture in the (new) agricultural towns built as part of the Saemangeum reclamation project, including Buan and Gochang, Jeollabuk-do, where industrialization and urbanization have accelerated due to the advent of the new West Coast era and the demand for water has risen sharply due to heavy population concentration.
- Development
- The construction of Buan Dam, which required an investment of KRW 61.3 billion, began in December 1991 and was completed in November 1996. On December 31, 1999, the dam was designated as a wide-area water source conservation area, and was also chosen as an excellent case of regional conflict resolution by the exposition organization committee for local government reform (Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs, Citizens Coalition for Economic Justice) in 2000.
- Composition
- Buan Dam is a Concrete Faced Rock-fill Dam (CFRD), a type of structure that is usually built to stabilize the main body of a dam or reservoir. It measures 282 meters in length and 50 meters in height. Jiksocheon Stream is the main water source, and the basin area covers 59km2.
Buan Dam consists of a main dam, a spillway, a cofferdam, tunnels and culvert-style diversion channels, an intake tower, and water supply facilities for the water pipes. Its total capacity is 50,300,000㎥; its effective storage capacity is 35,600,000㎥; and its flood control capacity is 9,300,000㎥. The power facility has a total capacity of 1,930,000kW, with annual energy production amounting to 1,522,000 GWh.
- Current Status
- The Buan Dam supplies water to Buan, Gochang and Saemangeum in Jeollabuk-do. The construction of the dam meant that the areas around Junggye-ri and Daehang-ri, Byeonsan-myeon, and Cheonglim-ri, Sangseo-myeon, Buan-gun, Jeollabuk-do had to be submerged, and 269 people of 86 households had to leave their homes. The Manghyangtap Tower was built to console the people who lost their homes, and the Manghyangje ritual is held there every year. Neighboring attractions of Buan Dam include the Byeonsanbando National Park, Jiksojeong Pavilion, Manghyangtap Tower, Buan Dam Water Cultural Center, and Buan Lake Literary Garden.