The reservoir that washes up against the lower end of our town is a vast and beautiful body of water, lined by Andean foothills. The hydroelectric dam which rests at the opposite end of the reservoir is commonly known as Gallito Ciego, meaning “blind hen.” Research about building the dam began in the 1960s and construction eventually started in the early 1980s. The dam would result in the flooding of two entire towns (Chungala and Montegrande, which had existed for 331 years) as well as 2/3 of our town, but neither the inhabitants of the area nor the congressmen from Cajamarca protested much to the installation. The residents whose houses were submerged were relocated to a nearby area and awarded several times the amount of land they previously owned as well as a new house.
The dam was built in 1988 as a project of the State with financial backing from a German development bank. It is now managed by a private company hired by the State. Interestingly, the dam does not directly provide electricity to our town, but rather is part of a regional network of hydroelectric plants which distributes the electricity appropriately throughout several departments.
People in our town today look back on the flooding and building of the dam with little regret. They acknowledge that the project sacrificed a few for energy and the better irrigation of lands for the many. However, most of the inhabitants of our town today were not directly affected by the project; only those in Chungala and Montegrande were relocated and today live in another city. Their reactions might be quite different.
The flooding of the valley had both benefits and costs, which are identified below:
Benefits
- Massive hydroelectric energy although it does not supply our town directly
- Greater irrigation access for many farmers in the surrounding valley
- Each relocated citizen was given several times the amount of land they previously owned as well as a new house
- Jobs for the region
- Change in climate. The climate is now cooler, which reduced the mosquito population and helped contribute to the eradication of malaria in the area
- Esthetically pleasing
- Creation of a new tourist attraction
Costs
- Large financial investment
- Destruction of two towns, Montegrande and Chungala, and the relocation of all inhabitants
- Destruction of 1,000 hectareas of rice land
- Loss of production capacity for 900,000 sacks of rice annually
- Dramatic reduction in population and emigration of human capital
- Flooding of valuable ancient archaeological sites. There are thousands of pre-Incan artifacts buried under the reservoir.
- Disruption of ecosystems including the complete extinction of shrimp and the businesses associated with selling shrimp
- Loss of “molino” (rice mills) industry whose factories were flooded
A second phase of the project was planned and never completed. This phase involved cementing the ground of the reservoir to prevent sediment buildup. However, the project went over budget and could not afford to carry out the second phase. As a result, the river which empties into the reservoir continues to carry large amounts of sediment which slowly builds up and reduces the capacity for water retention. Some citizens worry that the government will decide yet again to expand the reservoir once the sediment reduces the water capacity enough; flooding more land would be cheaper than implementing the second phase of cementation. Another problem with the sediment build-up is that it creates quicksand in certain areas, which is dangerous. There have been a number of deaths due to the quicksand.
- Destruction of two towns, Montegrande and Chungala, and the relocation of all inhabitants
- Destruction of 1,000 hectareas of rice land
- Loss of production capacity for 900,000 sacks of rice annually
- Dramatic reduction in population and emigration of human capital
- Flooding of valuable ancient archaeological sites. There are thousands of pre-Incan artifacts buried under the reservoir.
- Disruption of ecosystems including the complete extinction of shrimp and the businesses associated with selling shrimp
- Loss of “molino” (rice mills) industry whose factories were flooded
A second phase of the project was planned and never completed. This phase involved cementing the ground of the reservoir to prevent sediment buildup. However, the project went over budget and could not afford to carry out the second phase. As a result, the river which empties into the reservoir continues to carry large amounts of sediment which slowly builds up and reduces the capacity for water retention. Some citizens worry that the government will decide yet again to expand the reservoir once the sediment reduces the water capacity enough; flooding more land would be cheaper than implementing the second phase of cementation. Another problem with the sediment build-up is that it creates quicksand in certain areas, which is dangerous. There have been a number of deaths due to the quicksand.
There are some tourist activities that take place, and there are aspirations to bring more tourism in the future. In addition to administrative offices, there is a resort-type compound at Gallito Ciego, which has a pool, cabins to rent for the night, conference halls, etc. Mostly businesses use the location for seminars and conferences. Occasionally there have been adventure sport competitions such as wind surfing held on the reservoir, but this is not common. There are some obstacles to developing the tourist industry around the reservoir. One, which is mentioned above, is the existence of patches of quicksand. The reservoir is also contaminated from the sewage that runs into it from various towns
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