"Seen from Above, It's Even Worse"... Southern Reservoirs Lose 89% of Water in a Year

Okcheon Reservoir in Changnyeong Sees Surface Area Drop by 88.8% in One Year

Storage Rate at Just 11.1%

Water Levels Also Fall Sharply at Daegok Dam and Okjeong Lake

“Preparedness Needed for Compound Disasters of Extreme Heat and Drou

As heat waves and drought continue to affect southern regions, reservoirs have become exposed.

Changes in the water body area of Nakcheon Reservoir in Changnyeong last year (red) and this year (blue). Provided by Telepix.

On August 9, satellite startup Telepix analyzed satellite images from last year and this year, revealing that the surface area of Okcheon Reservoir in Changnyeong, Gyeongsangnam-do decreased by 88.8%, from 0.129 square kilometers on July 29 last year to just 0.014 square kilometers on August 1 this year.

The storage rate of Okcheon Reservoir also plunged, falling from 82.5% last year to 11.1% this year as of the respective observation dates, leaving water only in a narrow area near the intake tower.

Ulsan Daegok Dam, which currently has the lowest storage rate among water supply dams, also saw its surface storage area drop by 55.4%, from 1.268 square kilometers on July 30 last year to 0.566 square kilometers on July 30 this year. Meanwhile, Imsil Okjeong Lake—which supplies agricultural water to the Honam Plain via the Seomjingang Dam—experienced a 34% decrease in water surface area, from 13.25 square kilometers on August 1 last year to 8.74 square kilometers as of August 2 this year.

As of August 6, the cumulative rainfall in southern regions over the past two months was only 212.1 millimeters, accounting for just 46.8% of the average for the same period in previous years. This marks the fourth lowest rainfall recorded since the nationwide meteorological observation network was expanded in 1973. As the reservoir storage rate in the Gyeongsangnam-do region dropped to a critical level, Kim In-jung, President of Korea Rural Community Corporation, visited Okcheon Reservoir on August 4 to review drought countermeasures.

According to Telepix’s analysis, which was based on data from the NASA Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite, soil moisture increased in regions north of central South Korea, but decreased in southern regions. Soil moisture change is indicated by the volumetric ratio of water to soil (㎥/㎥). By province, Ulsan showed the most significant average decrease at -0.1268㎥/㎥, followed by Gyeongsangnam-do (-0.0983㎥/㎥), Jeollanam-do (-0.0489㎥/㎥), and Jeollabuk-do (-0.0181㎥/㎥).

Kim Hye-ri, Senior Analyst on the Rapid Analysis Team at Telepix, explained, "During this summer, southern regions have continued to face rainfall levels around half the average of the past decade, leading to a sharp decline in storage rates, surface water area, and soil moisture, and indicating an overall intensification of drought conditions. In particular, with the storage rates of Daegok Dam and Okcheon Reservoir falling to around 10%, ongoing monitoring and preparations for water shortages are urgently needed."

Meanwhile, experts emphasize the need for countermeasures, noting that the combined occurrence of drought and heat waves is increasing the frequency of disasters, expanding regional differences in precipitation, and making water resource management even more challenging.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.