Megastructures: The World’s Most Powerful Dam (Itaipu Dam) – National Geographic Documentary (2004)

By Sandeep on Sep 03, 2012 with Comments 0

Megastructures: The World’s Most Powerful Dam (Itaipu Dam) - This National Geographic 45 minutes long documentary film is aired on Oct 27, in the year 2004. To build the dam, the path of the mighty South American river was blocked. Thousands of acres of precious wild animal’s habitat and thousands of homes disappeared in the huge flood. 40 thousand workers battled against the forces of nature. Rocketing temperature and a constant threat of killer floods behind it all the potential of catastrophe. Building the Itaipu Dam took seven tough years. It’s a giant quest for energy come only at a devastating price.

Megastructures: The World’s Most Powerful Dam (Itaipu Dam) - The National Geographic documentary film says the Rio Parana the South America’s second biggest river, outstripped only by the mighty Amazon. The Parana marks the border between Brazil and Paraguay; here the river path is bald by a man-made structure the Itaipu Dam. It’s the world’s most powerful hydro electric dam. It pumps out 90,000 Giga watts every year enough to power London over three years. It took an army of 40 thousand workers and some 13 and half billion £ to build this monster structure. In the 1966, a complex negotiation begins between the two countries and for seven years the dam project was hung in a balance but in the end both admit that the electric supply was irresistible. In the year 1973, the countries signs, a treaty and the Itaipu Dam got the green light.

Megastructures: The World’s Most Powerful Dam (Itaipu Dam) - Further the National Geographic documentary says in October 1982 everybody watches the big event; engineers prepare to lift the gates and open the spill way for the first time. The water begins to flow, and it controls the cascade of water 22 times bigger than Niagara fall. Brazil is now home to the biggest man made water fall into the planet.

However, the heavy reliance on water power has its climatic price and all around the world the growing awareness of the environmental disaster that hydroelectric dams can cause.