Yusufeli: how is life in a town that will soon be flooded by the waters of the reservoir

Today, Turkey is implementing several large hydropower projects. One of them is the construction of a dam and the launch of a hydroelectric station on the Chorokh River, not far from the border with Georgia. The future Yusufbeyli hydroelectric station will allow to receive 1.8 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, and the constructed dam will become one of the highest in the world and the highest in the country. But all these records do not please the residents of the small town of Yusufeli, which will soon have to go under water.

The Chorokh River flows in the north-east of Turkey, as well as in Georgia, where the lower reaches of the river are located within Adjara. Chorokh is very popular among rafting enthusiasts. But after the construction of the Yusufeli dam, as well as other dams that are planned to be built for hydropower, Chorokh can no longer be so convenient for rafting, and popular routes will have to be reviewed.

Yusufeli Dam is an arch-concrete type and has a height of 270 meters. It will become the highest dam in the country and the 7th highest in the ranking of the highest dams in the world. The dam is located 70 kilometers southwest of the city of Artvin, the center of the Turkish province of the same name. Unfortunately, after the construction of the hydroelectric power station, you will have to flood the city of Yusufeli, which is located at the confluence of the Barkhal River at Chorokh.

Yusufeli is a quiet provincial town in which time seems to have stopped still in the middle of the last century. There are no traffic jams, high-rise buildings and huge shopping centers. Yusufeli residents live in old houses, sheltered on the mountainsides, or built relatively recently high-rise buildings, and are awaiting relocation. After the construction of the dam is completed, their city will go under water, as it is located below the future level of the reservoir, and all residents will be relocated to another settlement called New Yusufeli. It will be located not far from the old one, but about 70 meters higher. In the meantime, unhurried provincial life continues here and nothing indicates a coming resettlement. As always, local travel agencies offer the organization of exciting rafting, and shopkeepers slowly drink tea right on the street, discussing the latest news.