Rajjaprabha Dam
| Cheow Lan Lake | |
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Cheow Lan Lake Map showing available Hikes, Caves and Floating Bungalows
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| Location | Surat Thani Province, Thailand |
| Coordinates | 8°58′36″N 98°48′16″E / 8.97667°N 98.80444°ECoordinates: 8°58′36″N 98°48′16″E / 8.97667°N 98.80444°E |
| Type | reservoir |
| First flooded | 1982 |
| Surface area | 165 square kilometres (64 sq mi) |
Cheow Lan Lake (Thai: เชี่ยวหลาน, rtgs: Chiao Lan) or Rajjaprabha Dam Reservoir (อ่างเก็บน้ำเขื่อนรัชชประภา, RTGS: Ratchaprapha~), is in Khao Sok National Park in Surat Thani Province, Thailand. It is an 165-square-kilometre (64 sq mi) artificial lake, created in 1982 by the construction of Rajjaprapha Dam by the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) as a source of electricity.
Rajjaprabha Dam, meaning "the light of the kingdom", got its name in May 1987 from the king at the opening ceremony on the king's 60th birthday. Before that day it was called the "Cheow Lan Project". It was a so-called multi-purpose project for power generation, flood control, irrigation and fishery. In 1982, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) started to create the Rajjaprabha Dam and block the Klong Saeng River. It took about one year until they completely flooded the 165 square kilometres (64 sq mi) basin. To flood this large area, 385 families of Ban Chiew Lan village were resettled. Rubber and other farming opportunities such as poultry, fruit orchards, vegetable farming, and reservoir fishery were introduced together with the needed training programs and credit facilities to sustain the farmers' income.
Each family received 19 rai (7.2 acres) of rubber plantation as well as one rai (0.39 acres) for their private homes. As part of the compensation, the resettled people received 1,000 baht monthly per family. Resettlement drove the creation of basic public infrastructure, water supply systems, and public buildings such as schools, police station, medical center, and community hall which were built by the Thai government.
A resettlement of animals took place by boat and helicopter to prevent them from drowning or starving on new created islands. Many fish species died due to the stagnant water conditions. Those which survived adapted to their new environment.
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