Chini (reservoir)
{{Infobox lake
| name = Chini
| image = 14. Chini pond 3.jpg
| caption =
| image_bathymetry =
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| location =
| coords = {{coord|13.655626|N|39.124926|E|type:waterbody_region:ET|display=inline,title}}
| type = Freshwater artificial lake
| inflow =
| outflow =
| catchment =
| basin_countries = Ethiopia
| length =
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| max-depth =
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| shore =
| elevation = {{convert|2580|m|abbr=on}}
| frozen =
| islands =
|pushpin_map = Ethiopia
|pushpin_label_position = right
|pushpin_map_caption =
|pushpin_mapsize =
| cities = Melfa
| reference =
}}
Chini is a small reservoir located in Melfa (Dogu’a Tembien woreda, Tigray Region, Ethiopia). The 151-metres long earthen dam that holds the reservoir was built in 1993 by the Relief Society of Tigray.{{cite book |last1=De Wit |first1=Joke |title=Stuwmeren in Tigray (Noord-Ethiopië): kenmerken, sedimentatie en sediment-bronnen. Unpub. M.Sc. thesis |date=2003 |publisher=Department of Geography, K.U.Leuven}} It was mainly constructed for purpose of livestock watering.
The catchment of the reservoir is 1.86 km² large, with a perimeter of 5.15 km and a length of 1800 metres. The reservoir suffers from rapid siltation.{{cite journal |last1=Nigussie Haregeweyn |first1=and colleagues |title=Reservoirs in Tigray: characteristics and sediment deposition problems |journal=Land Degradation and Development |date=2006 |volume=17 |pages=211–230 |doi=10.1002/ldr.698 |s2cid=129834993 |doi-access=free }} The lithology of the catchment is composed of Ashangi Basalts. Part of the water that could be used for irrigation is lost through seepage; the positive side-effect is that this contributes to groundwater recharge.{{cite journal |last1=Nigussie Haregeweyn |first1=and colleagues |title=Sediment yield variability in Northern Ethiopia: A quantitative analysis of its controlling factors |journal=Catena |date=2008 |volume=75 |issue=1 |pages=65–76 |doi=10.1016/j.catena.2008.04.011 |bibcode=2008Caten..75...65H }} Actually, in the wider surrounding of the reservoir, both upstream and downstream the level of the watertable has strongly raised, and the area has become remarkably greener.