Euphrates Dams Raise Readiness for Autumn Water Flows

The Director General of the General Establishment for the Euphrates Dam, Haitham Bakour, said the establishment is working to raise the readiness of the three Euphrates River dams to absorb any incoming water flows as autumn and winter approach. Bakour explained in an interview on Al Ikhbariah that this is being done by increasing the volume of water released and creating greater storage space in Lake Euphrates.

Operations Rooms and Continuous Monitoring

The establishment operates a central control room and three subsidiary operations rooms at the three dams, along with monitoring points that track incoming and released water quantities and storage levels, with daily data review.

Increasing Released Water Volumes

Bakour noted that water arriving from the Turkish side at a rate of 1200 cubic meters per second prompted the establishment to gradually raise released water volumes to 1000 cubic meters per second, then to 1200 cubic meters per second, while accounting for evaporation rates and irrigation and drinking water needs.

He said the establishment is currently working to empty around 6 million cubic meters of storage capacity in the lakes, aiming to reach full readiness and capacity by the end of December to absorb rainfall waves or snowmelt coming from Turkey, relying on satellite imagery tracking, climate forecasts, and storage levels in Turkish dams.

Coordination with Emergency Ministry and Provinces

Bakour explained that the establishment handles data collection and analysis, while the Ministry of Emergency Affairs and provincial operations rooms handle early warning tasks for local communities, relaying alerts and warnings to residents along the riverbanks in cooperation with local administrations.

• A joint operations room works around the clock
• It includes the early warning official from the Ministry of Emergency Affairs
• Water resources officials and water authorities in Syria
• Emergency officials and water resources directors in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor provinces
• Representatives of the General Establishment for the Euphrates Dam

Within this room, data is exchanged instantly, and consequences on the ground are monitored, with coordination when reducing water flow or taking direct action on the river course is needed.

Background on Incoming Quantities

On September 18, Bakour confirmed that quantities arriving from Turkey had increased over the past month and a half at a rate of 1200 cubic meters per second, noting that the establishment monitors incoming water quantities around the clock to respond appropriately, and that the structural condition of the three dams is good and safe. The establishment also announced on September 15 the opening of spillway gate No. 6 at the Euphrates Dam, bringing the volume of water released from the Euphrates dams to 1100 cubic meters per second.