Sedimentation released through the Punt dal Gall dam is being blamed killing thousands of trout and other aquatic wildlife in Switzerland's Spoel River, HydroWorld.com has learned.
The dam and its accompanying 393-MW hydroelectric plant -- located in a national park in Switzerland's eastern Graubunden region -- impound the Spoel River.
A release from utility Engandiner Kraftwerk AG and the Swiss National Park said a technical problem at the dam resulted in the blockage of residual water supply, leading to park rangers noticing a dramatic drop in the river's level Saturday.
Officials at the dam tried to solve the problem by opening one of the dam's ducts but instead unleashed the deadly wave of sediment, killing fish as far as four miles downstream of Punt dal Gall.
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