The dam is built on the river Amathos at the northern boundary of the Germasoyia Municipality, about 4 km from the coast. It was constructed in 1968, on a territory owned by the Municipality and the Akrounda and Finikaria Communities, to support local agriculture and water supply. It is an earth-dam, 49 meters high and 110 hectares long and has a water capacity of 13.5 million square meters.
The age-long presence of water in the dam has created a new environment and as a result, this manmade project had had a beneficial impact upon the flora and fauna of the area and became the ideal place for water based activities and sports such as canoeing and fishing.
Due to the presence of water:
An aquatic environment emerged around the dam’s perimeter, with a rich flora that renders it a blissful place to visit during winter and spring.
During the winter period, the dam hosts a great number of aquatic birds that travel from cold Europe down to the warm south.
The dam contains a variety of fish species and supports year-round fishing to satisfy the fishing fans. There has also been a great effort to support and promote canoeing and today the dam provides a training place for almost all the canoeing teams in Cyprus and hosts the National as well as International Competitions.
Furthermore, the visitor can see the ruins of the Medieval Water Mills and the ancient church of Agios Loukas, on the north side of the dam, and enjoy his coffee in the peaceful and tranquil traditional village of Finikaria, located in the north-western part of the dam, or in the nearby village of Akrounda, famous for its oranges and mandarins.