Jinvali Reservoir, Tbilisi, Georgia: then (2010) and now (2014)

The walled fortress of Ananuri, 70 kilometres north of Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia, lies above a reservoir that provides water to the region. The ancient fortress and church of Ananuri is a 13^th century castle complex. The Jinvali Reservoir (often written Zhinvali) belongs to the Dusheti municipality in the Mtiuleti Region. It is connected to the Aragvi River that joins the Mtkvari River (that runs through Tbilisi) at the town of Mtskheta. The reservoir is on the Georgian Military Highway that joins Tbilisi to Stepantsminda – a small town formerly called Kazbegi after the Georgian writer Alexander Kazbegi (1848-1893). Running through the picturesque Caucasus mountain region, the highway continues to North Ossetia.

The Jinvali Reservoir has one of the largest hydroelectric power stations in Georgia at the Jinvali Damn, built in 1971, the last built by the Soviet government. Apart from household water and fish (trout), it feeds 13.8 million kilowatts of electricity to the capital.

Government plans in 2012 to build additional reservoirs caused controversy as villagers recalled the submersion of villages and grave sites during the construction of the Jinvali Reservoir (http://ens-newswire.com/2012/03/05/dam-projects-face-resistance-in-georgia/).

The Jinvali Reservoir is best viewed in winter when the water appears dark blue as it rises to full capacity. The photographs here show my visit to Jinvali Reservoir in October 2010 when it was full, and the most recent visit in the spring of May 2014 when it was at low capacity.

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