The Kārun (also spelled as Karoun) is
Iran's most effluent, and the only navigable, river. It is 450 miles (720 km) long. It rises in the Zard Kuh mountains of the Bakhtiari district in the Zagros Range, receiving many tributaries, such as the Dez and the
Kuhrang, before passing through the capital of the
khuzestan Province of
Iran, the city of Ahwaz.
The
Karun continues toward the Persian Gulf, forking into two primary branches on its delta: the Bahmanshir and the Haffar that joins the Shatt al-Arab (Arvand Rud in Persian), emptying into the Persian Gulf.
The important Island of
Abadan is located between these two branches of the
Karun. The port city of
Khorramshahr is divided from the Island of
Abadan by the Haffar branch.
In the Biblical tradition,
Karun is to be identified with Pishon, one of the four rivers of Eden/Paradise.
...see more The others being Tigris, Euphrates and the Karkheh ("Gihon" of the Biblical story). In the early classical times, Karun was known as the Pasitigris, which may be pointing etymologically to the source of the Biblical name, Pishon.
The modern medieval and modern name, Karun, is a corruption of the name, Kuhrang which is still maintained by one of the two primary tributaries of the Karun.
There are a number of dams on the Karun River, mainly built to generate hydroelectric power and provide flood control.
Gotvand Dam, Masjed Soleyman Dam, Karun-1 (Shahid Abbaspour Dam), Karun-3, and Karun-4, most owned by Iran Water and Power Resources Development Co., all are on the main stem.
Karun-2 would potentially be located in the Sussan Plain between Shahid Abbaspour and Karun-3, but because of fear of submerging archaeological sites, the project is still under consideration.
A Karun-5 dam upstream of Karun-4 has also been proposed.The Masjed Soleyman,[12] Shahid Abbaspour, and Karun-3 dams each generate 1,000-2,000 MW of power to service the peaking power sector of Iran's electricity grid, and when completed, Karun-4 will also generate 1,000 MW.
There are also many dams on the river's tributaries. Dez dam, Bakhtiari Dam (under construction) and Khersan-3 Dam (under construction) are among them.
Proposed are Khersan 1, Khersan 2, Zalaki, Liro, Roudbar Lorestan, Bazoft, and others. The dams on the Karun have had a significant effect on the sediment transport and the ecology of the river, and have required the relocation of thousands of residents.
Reference: www.wikipedia.org
