Page "Geography of Latvia" Paragraph 15

The river carries an average annual flow of 21 cubic kilometers.

Its total descent within Latvia of ninety-eight meters has made it an attractive source of hydroelectric power production.

The first hydroelectric station — Ķegums Hydro Power Plant — was built during Latvia's independence period.

The second dam — Pļaviņas Hydro Power Plant — aroused an unusual wave of protest in 1958.

Most Latvians opposed the flooding of historical sites and a particularly scenic gorge with rare plants and natural features, such as the Staburags, a cliff comparable in cultural significance to the Lorelei in Germany.

The construction of the dam was endorsed in 1959, however, after the purge of relatively liberal and nationally oriented leaders under Eduards Berklavs and their replacement by Moscow-oriented, ideologically conservative cadres led by Arvīds Pelše.

The third dam — Riga Hydroelectric Power Plant — just above Riga, did not provoke much protest because of the seeming hopelessness of the cause.

The proposed fourth dam, at the town of Daugavpils on the Daugava River, became the rallying point for protest in 1986-87 by hundreds of thousands of Latvians.

This dam was not constructed, in spite of the vast expenditures already poured into the project.