North Crimean Canal

North Crimean Canal
Water intake structure at the start of the canal at Tavriisk, 800 m from the Kakhovka reservoir
Map of the canal
Specifications
Length	402.6 km (250.2 miles)
History
Former names	North Crimean Canal of the Komsomol of Ukraine
Current owner	Autonomous Republic of Crimea (de jure) Republic of Crimea (de facto) (see Political status of Crimea)
Original owner	Soviet government
Principal engineer	Ukrvodbud
Other engineer(s)	Ukrdiprovodbud
Date of act	September 21, 1950 (1950-09-21)
Construction began	1957
Date completed	1976
Geography
Start point	Tavriisk, Ukraine
End point	Kerch city water treatment facilities
Beginning coordinates	46°45′55″N 33°23′40″E / 46.76528°N 33.39444°E / 46.76528; 33.39444
Ending coordinates	45°20′38″N 36°00′36″E / 45.34389°N 36.01000°E / 45.34389; 36.01000
Branch(es)	Krasnoznamiansky Canal Soyedenitelny Canal
Connects to	Dnieper River

The North Crimean Canal,^[a] formerly known as the North Crimean Canal of the Lenin's Komsomol of Ukraine^[b] in Soviet times, is a land improvement canal for irrigation and watering of Kherson Oblast in southern Ukraine and the Crimean Peninsula. The canal has multiple branches throughout Kherson Oblast and Crimea, and is normally active from March until December.^[1]

Preparation for construction began in 1957, soon after the transfer of Crimea to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1954. The main project works took place in three stages between 1961 and 1971. The construction was conducted by the Komsomol members sent by the Komsomol travel ticket (Komsomolskaya putyovka) as part of shock construction projects and accounted for some 10,000 volunteer workers.

Ukraine shut down the canal in 2014 soon after Russia annexed Crimea. Russia restored the flow of water in March 2022 during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

A 2015 study found that the canal had been providing 85% of Crimea's water prior to the 2014 shutdown. Of the water from the canal, 72% went to agriculture and 10% to industry, while water for drinking and other public uses made up 18%.^[2]

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