Über den Staudamm Stamboliyski

Stamboliyski Reservoir is situated on the Maritsa River near the town of Stamboliyski in Plovdiv Province, central Bulgaria. Completed in 1963 with a capacity of 205.6 MCM, the reservoir is one of the few major dams on the main course of the Maritsa — Bulgaria's longest river and the principal river of the Thracian Plain. Its primary functions are irrigation supply for the highly productive agricultural lands of the Upper Thracian Plain, drinking water provision to several municipalities in the Plovdiv region, and industrial water supply for factories in the Maritsa Industrial Zone. The reservoir also provides important flood protection for downstream communities during the Maritsa's spring flood peaks. The Maritsa at this point receives inflows from the Rhodope Mountains to the south and the Sredna Gora range to the north, giving it a large and hydrologically diverse catchment. The reservoir landscape is characterised by flat, intensively cultivated agricultural plains on the northern shore and more rolling terrain with vineyards and orchards to the south. Stamboliyski lies within the greater Plovdiv metropolitan area and is important for the water security of one of Bulgaria's most economically dynamic regions, home to significant manufacturing and agro-industrial activity.