Volta Lake
| Lake Volta | |
|---|---|
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Lake Volta in Ghana
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| Location | Ghana, West Africa |
| Coordinates | 6°30′N 0°0′E / 6.500°N 0.000°ECoordinates: 6°30′N 0°0′E / 6.500°N 0.000°E |
| Lake type | Reservoir |
| Primary inflows |
White Volta River Black Volta River |
| Primary outflows | Volta River |
| Catchment area | 385,180 km2 (148,720 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Ghana |
| Surface area | 8,502 km2 (3,283 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 18.8 m (62 ft) |
| Max. depth | 75 m (246 ft) |
| Water volume | 148 km3 (32.6 × 1012 gallons) |
| Shore length1 | 4,800 kilometres (2,980 mi) |
| Surface elevation | 85 m (279 ft) |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Lake Volta is a large reservoir contained behind the Akosombo Dam. It is completely within the country of Ghana and has a surface area of 8,502 square kilometres (3,283 sq mi).
Lake Volta lies along the Greenwich meridian, and just six degrees of latitude north of the Equator. The lake's northernmost point is close to the town of Yapei, and its southernmost extreme is at the Akosombo Dam, 520 km (320 mi) downstream from Yapei. Akosombo Dam holds back both the White Volta River and the Black Volta River, which formerly converged where the middle of the reservoir now lies, to form the single Volta River. The present Volta River flows from the outlets of the dam's powerhouse and spillways to the Atlantic Ocean in southern Ghana.
The main islands within the lake are Dodi, Dwarf, and Kporve.Digya National Park lies on part of the lake's western shore.
The lake is formed by the Akosombo Dam, which was originally conceived by the geologist Albert Ernest Kitson in 1915, but whose construction only began in 1961 with completion in 1965. Because of the formation of Lake Volta, about 78,000 people were relocated to new towns and villages, along with 200,000 animals belonging to them. About 120 buildings were destroyed, not including small residences, as over 3,000 square miles (7,800 km2) of territory were flooded.
The Akosombo Dam provides electricity for much of the country, as well as for export to Togo, Benin, and nearby countries, to earn foreign exchange value. Lake Volta is also important for transportation, providing a waterway for both ferries and cargo watercraft. Since the huge lake lies in a tropical area, the water remains warm year-round naturally. Given good management, Lake Volta is the location of a vast population of fish and large fisheries.
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Wikipedia