In 1995 construction began Alqueva in the Portuguese region of Alentejo. On February 8, 2002, the gates were closed, giving start to create the largest artificial lake in Europe. All the activities undertaken, which has caused the biggest social impact has been sinking under the waters of Aldeia da Luz, a small village of 300 inhabitants. The solution found to minimize the impact on the population was to build a new village a few kilometers.