12 PROBLEMS CREATED BY THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE KAINJI DAM PROJECT IN NIGERIA
The Kainji dam project is located in the northwestern part of Nigeria across the Niger river at Kainji. The project was opened in 1969 and lies in a remote, thinly populated, and very poor part of Nigeria. The dam is 66 meters high and 55 meters long and has produced a man-made lake behind it known as lake Kainji (130 km long and 1300 kilometers square). The following are problems created by the establishment of Kainji dam project: the decline in the fishing industry at the coast due to loss of silt deposits now settling out in the lake , which would support plankton growth. The delta has reduced in size as it is not receiving significant silt deposits, and hence currents are eroding the edge of the delta , and this limits coastal delta activities such as tourism . to the reservoir, the lake is a barrier to easy communication in the area since it occupies a large area The growth of urban centres is associated with various problems such as high crime rates, unemployment and ...