Chalillo Dam Reservoir

Chalillo Dam Reservoir Review

The Chalillo Dam Reservoir was created in late 2005 by the controversial damming of the Macal River for an electric power plant owned by the Canadian power company, Fortis. Since then, two other dams have been completed. The original 150-foot-high dam with a span width of 420 feet, along with its sisters, destroyed a habitat for endangered species such as the Scarlet Macaw and was opposed by environmentalists in Belize and around the world. It is unknown how many Mayan sites were flooded. The lake extends some 12 mi (20 km) along the Macal and Raspacula river valleys. The dams are still controversial, and some in Cayo and elsewhere blame the dams for deteriorating water quality in the Macal and sediment in the river. At present the reservoir has no recreational uses of interest to visitors. In mid-2011, the Belize government moved to renationalize the Fortis-owned Belize Electricity Ltd. power company.