Smallwood Reservoir

Smallwood Reservoir is a vast reservoir in Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, formed by dams and dikes to supply water to the Churchill Falls hydroelectric project.

Connect

Churchill Falls Generating Station: A hydroelectric power station on the Churchill River in Labrador, operated by Churchill Falls (Labrador) Corporation. The reservoir stores and regulates the water that drives its turbines.
Churchill Falls project: The hydroelectric development centered on Churchill Falls Generating Station and its associated dams, dikes, and transmission works. The reservoir was created as the project’s principal water-storage system.
Inundation: The covering of land by water, naturally or through deliberate flooding. Filling the reservoir submerged extensive areas of Labrador’s interior.
Lake Guri: A large artificial reservoir in Venezuela created by the Guri Dam on the Caroní River. It is another vast hydroelectric reservoir, but lies in a tropical river basin.
Churchill River: A major river in Labrador that flows east from the Smallwood Reservoir to the Atlantic Ocean. The reservoir captures the river’s upper watershed before water continues toward Churchill Falls.
Churchill Falls: A major waterfall on the Churchill River in Labrador, largely diverted through the Churchill Falls hydroelectric project. The reservoir’s water is routed to the project that diverts the falls.
Methylmercury: An organic mercury compound that can accumulate in aquatic food webs and harm human health. Flooded vegetation contributed to elevated mercury exposure in fish and people downstream.
Lake Volta: A large artificial lake in Ghana formed by the Akosombo Dam on the Volta River. Its scale offers a comparison with Smallwood’s extensive Labrador impoundment.
Lakes Plateau: A high, lake-dotted plateau in central Labrador that forms much of the Churchill River headwaters. Its lakes and drainage basin supply much of the reservoir’s stored water.
Churchill Falls (Labrador) Corporation: A company established to develop and operate the Churchill Falls hydroelectric project in Labrador. The corporation built and operates the power project supplied by the reservoir.