Megget Reservoir is a man-made water body in Ettrick Forest

Ettrick Forest

Ettrick Forest is a former royal forest in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland.It is a large area of moorland, south of Peebles, stretching from Dollar Law to Selkirk.-See also:*James Hogg*Craik Forest*Wauchope Forest...

, in the Scottish Borders

Scottish Borders

The Scottish Borders is one of 32 local government council areas of Scotland. It is bordered by Dumfries and Galloway in the west, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian in the north west, City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian to the north; and the non-metropolitan counties of Northumberland...

. The 259 hectares (640 acre) reservoir is held back by the largest earth dam in Scotland. The reservoir collects water from the Tweedsmuir Hills, which is then conveyed 28 miles (45.1 km) via pipelines to Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

. The pipelines are routed through the Manor Valley

Manor Water

The Manor Water is a river in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It rises in the Ettrick Forest and flows into the River Tweed one mile south of Peebles.-See also:*List of places in the Scottish Borders*List of places in Scotland...

 and the Meldon Hills, to Gladhouse Reservoir

Gladhouse Reservoir

Gladhouse Reservoir, formerly Moorfoot Loch, is a reservoir in Midlothian, Scotland, five miles south of Penicuik. It is the largest area of freshwater in the Lothians....

 and Glencorse Reservoir

Glencorse Reservoir

Glencorse Reservoir is a reservoir in Midlothian, Scotland, UK, two miles west of Glencorse, in the Pentland Hills.It is retained by an earth dam, and it was built between 1820 and 1824 by James Jardine to provide water for the mills of Auchendinny, Milton Bridge and Glencorse, and to supply...

 in the Pentland Hills

Pentland Hills

The Pentland Hills are a range of hills to the south-west of Edinburgh, Scotland. The range is around 20 miles in length, and runs south west from Edinburgh towards Biggar and the upper Clydesdale.Some of the peaks include:* Scald Law...

. The outflow from the reservoir is the Megget Water

Megget Water

Megget Water is a river in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, in the former Selkirkshire. The Water rises at Broad Hill, passes through Megget Reservoir and empties into St Mary's Loch...

, which flows into St. Mary's Loch

History

The Megget Reservoir Scheme was first considered in 1963. The Water Order was granted by the Secretary of State in 1974, and construction started in 1976. The reservoir was officially opened on 30 September 1983. It has a capacity of 61400000 cubic metres (2,168,320,505.5 cu ft), and a maximum water level of 334 metres (1,095.8 ft) above Ordnance Datum

Ordnance Datum

In the British Isles, an Ordnance Datum or OD is a vertical datum used by an ordnance survey as the basis for deriving altitudes on maps. A spot height may be expressed as AOD for "above ordnance datum". Usually mean sea level is used for the datum...

. The embankment is 56 metres (183.7 ft) high and its crest is 568 metres (1,863.5 ft) long.

External links

• Gazetteer for Scotland: Megget Reservoir
• Biggar Archaeology Group Megget reservoir project
• Southern Reporter, 10 February 2010: Fighting flood from Megget reservoir
• Case Study, Megget Reservoir: Fighting erosion

See also

• Talla Reservoir
  Talla Reservoir
  Talla Reservoir, located a mile from Tweedsmuir, Scottish Borders, Scotland, is an earth-work dam fed by Talla Water. The reservoir is supplemented by water from the nearby Fruid Reservoir...
  
  
• Baddinsgill Reservoir
  Baddinsgill Reservoir
  Baddinsgill Reservoir is a small reservoir in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland close to Carlops, West Linton, and the boundary with Midlothian...
  
  
• Fruid Water
  Fruid Water
  Fruid Water is a small reservoir in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, UK, near Menzion.-See also:*Baddinsgill Reservoir*Megget Reservoir*Talla Reservoir*West Water Reservoir*List of reservoirs and dams in the United Kingdom-External links:*...
  
  
• Westwater Reservoir
  Westwater Reservoir
  Westwater Reservoir is an artificial reservoir in the Pentland Hills, Scottish Borders, 3 km west of West Linton, and 26 km south west of Edinburgh...
  
  
• List of reservoirs and dams in the United Kingdom