Lac de Padula, reservoir in France

Lac de Padula is a 26-hectare reservoir in the Oletta plain, most of it in the commune of Oletta with two small southern stretches in Olmeta-di-Tuda. An earth dam, its body holding 87,000 cubic metres of material, crosses the Ruisseau de Furmicaiola; the Vitte and Vomera streams also feed it. The D262 from Oletta crosses the eastern arm and follows the south shore, and the villages of Oletta and Olmeta-di-Tuda look down on the water from higher ground.

The reservoir was created in 1991 to meet water needs for farmers in the Conca d'Oro region and improve irrigation. In 2005, the authority OEHC received permission to operate the facility and distribute up to two million cubic meters of water annually, particularly during the dry summer months.

The D262 from Oletta to the east crosses the lake's eastern arm before running along the south shore, and a side road from the D82 reaches the plain. Only pedestrian access to the water is allowed; swimming and all boating, sail, rowed or motorised, are banned. Fishing and restocking are permitted under agreements with the fishing federation.

The dam releases a reserved summer flow of 0.007 cubic metres per second, keeping a minimum flow in the Furmicaiola and partly in the Aliso. Stored volume has ranged from 800,000 to 1,900,000 cubic metres between 2003 and 2009. The reservoir sits just upstream of the Aliso-Oletta Natura 2000 site.