About Lefkara Dam

Lefkara dam is situated in the Larnaca district on the Pentaschoinos River, in a striking limestone landscape near the village of Lefkara — famous throughout Cyprus and internationally for its intricate handmade lace, Lefkaritika. Built in 1981 with a capacity of 13.9 MCM and standing 68 metres tall, the earth-fill dam was an important early investment in water infrastructure for the Larnaca district, a region that receives relatively modest rainfall and has historically been water-stressed. The Pentaschoinos River drains the eastern Troodos rain shadow zone — a region where annual precipitation is significantly reduced compared to the windward western slopes, typically averaging 400-500 mm in the upper catchment and declining sharply toward the coast. This semi-arid character means Lefkara's reservoir levels closely track winter storm intensity and frequency, and the dam can shift from comfortably full to critically low within a single dry year. The reservoir provides irrigation water for the surrounding agricultural land, particularly the vineyards and olive groves that are central to the local economy, and it contributes to the regional water supply network alongside the neighbouring Dipotamos dam upstream. Lefkara sits within a landscape of white chalk hills and eroded limestone gullies that give the area a distinctive, almost lunar appearance — a geology that also underlies the poor water retention characteristics of the catchment soils. The combination of low rainfall, fast runoff, and limited groundwater recharge makes Lefkara a sensitive indicator of drought conditions in the eastern Troodos zone, and water managers watch it closely whenever winter rainfall falls significantly below seasonal averages.