China's Three Gorges Dam ProjectCASESTUDY

IntroductionChina's Yangtze River IS the world's Jrd largest river and one of its most dangerous. The 6.300 kilometer riversurges through a legendary, 200 kilometer stretch of canyons formed by the immense limestone cliffs known asthe Three Gorges. The gorges - the Xiling, Wu, and Qutang - are home to some of the most scenic and beautifullandscape anywhere in the world, and their splendor has inspired Chinese painters and poets for centuries. TheChinese government began building a dam on the Yangtze River In early 1997 and expects to block the river inthe November of 1997. The project is to be completed in the year 2009 with an estimated to cost of90 billionYuan, or $13 billion. The Idea of building a gigantic dam m the Three Gorges area in China to harness theYangtze is not new. More than seventy years ago, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, pioneer of the Chinese democratic revolution,proposed that a Yangtze Three Gorges Project be constructed. When built the Three Gorges Dam will be thelargest and most powerful dam ever built In the world. in the grand Chinese tradition of gargantuan publ ic worksprojects like the Great Wall, the Three Gorges dam will stretch 2 kilometers across the Yangtze RIver, soar 600feet into the air, and create an Immense, deep-water reservoir that will be 375 miles long and 575 feet deep Withan average width of J ,600 feet - twice the width of the natural river.

There has been intense debate about China's attempt to build the massive structure. What follows is a briefdescription of that debate.

Wiry Build the Dam?The dam will allow 10,000 ton ocean-faring cargo ships and cruise liners to navigate 1,500 miles Inland from thePacific Ocean to the city ofChongqing. The Yangtze's navigation capacity will be increased from 10 million to 50million tons a year with the cost lowered by 35-37%. With 15 million people, Chongqing will become the largestseaport In the world.

With lis total installed capacity of 18,200 Megawatts, the Three Gorges Hydropower Station will generate 84.7billion KWH a year, one-ninth of the national total generated power. This IS enough energy for most of central

. and eastern China. This relatively clean energy source would reduce China's reliance on coal and the pollutants inthe atmosphere that accompanies it. With China's growing economy - among the fastest In the world - Chineseofficials believe the energy generated from this dam will continue to propel China's economy into the 21 stcentury.

In addition, the dam will control the "mother of all floods," - the Yangtze River. The Yangtze is the world's 3rdlargest river and one of its most dangerous. The dam would manage the 6,300 kilometer river as it surges througha legendary, 200 kilometer stretch of canyons formed by the immense limestone cliffs known as the ThreeGorges. Historically, the population of 10 the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River downstream of thedarn site, suffered tremendous losses from flooding both in human lives and property. In 1931 alone, as a result offlooding, 333 thousand hectares of cultivated land were stricken, 145 thousand people drowned.

Wiry not to Build the Dam?The environmental change caused by the dam wil] be as massive as the dam itself: millions will lose their homesand livelihoods, fertile agnculturallands will be destroyed, rare and endangered fish species will be forever lostunder an immense man-made sea.

The world's largest dam WIll flood over 62,000 acres of farmland - this at a time when SCientists are concerned

with China's increasing reliance on food imports. 13 major cities, 140 large, and hundreds of small villages alongthe river's banks will be covered by the new reservoir. This "event" will necessitate the evacuation of 1.25 millionpeople. It will also "desecrate some of the most awe-inspiring landscapes on the planet, and drown thousands ofarc heological and cultural sites." 1

There is further concern that Chongqing and many other cities will flush tremendous amounts of sewage and toxicwaste into the reservoir, turning it into "a cesspool that will threaten the health of scores of millions who live inthe Yangtze Basin."2 No funds have been allocated by the Chinese government for water treatment. Pollution andslow-moving water could also threaten fish, reptiles, and other wildlife that depend on the river for their survival.Chinese scientists arc presently studying the endangered Yangtze RIver dolphins, but there are very few funds toresearch the other threatened species.

How does China Answer its Critics?China reiterates the main desire to stem the loss of Iife and property because of the danger of flooding. Every yearlosses from Yangtze flooding costs China and its people billions of yuan, tremendous loss of life, acres ofproductive farm fields, and months of lost time.

China has an aggressive and serious resettlement program for the displaced residents of the Yangtze River valleybehind the dam. When the reservoir is filled with water, 632 square kilometers ofland will be submerged and 21counties and cities in Sichuan and Hubei provinces will be affected by the year 2009. Many of the people beingresettled will be moved along the shores of the newly formed reservoir. To ensure the smooth progress of theproject, the State Council, China's highest governing body, has called on various areas to support the resettlementprogram 20 provinces and cities nationwide have provided support with funding, technology and materials to thereservoir area. Scientific research institutes have provided technology to promote agricultural development inareas surrounding the reservoir. Farmers 10 the reservoir area have become better off by applying methods ofplanting American Ginseng, melons, and raising soft-shelled turtles and deer. New techniques in the planting ofrice, vegetables, and oranges have been introduced to the area. For example, Tongshuwan, a village in HubeiProvince, is the first village that will be submerged once the reservoir is filled with water. Here 1098 of 1146people will have to be resettled. As an experimental base for resettlement, 906 people in the village have movedto new dwellings, and those resettled have planted 60 hectares of citrus orchards. To the villagers surprise, theirliving conditions have improved: their average income was 5.35 times that of 1990's figures. As of 1997 morethan 20,000 people had been resettled, 75,000 square meters of housing had been rebuilt, and over 60 newfactories had gone into operation with an additional 2,500 factories being built. State investment in the ThreeGorges Project was 90 billion yuan Of this amount, 40 billion yuan was used for resettlement.

China recognizes the need to develop renewable energy sources and end their dependence on coal. Uncontrolledburning of coal in some parts of China releases pollutants into the atmosphere; sulfur oxides, hydrocarbons,carbon dioxide, and particulates in the fonn of soot. Even clean burning coal plants in China pump copiousamounts of carbon dioxide mto the atmosphere. Mining for coal is also a dangerous occupation for millions ofChinese workers - especially 10 underground mines. Both surface mining and underground mining can causeenvironmental damage. Acid may pollute water by draining into streams, and subsidence of the ground maydamage buildings. Removing trees and other surface vegetation may cause soil erosion. And although heavy,bulky and expensi ve to transport, coal must be shipped long distances, because most of the factories and andpower plants using it are far from the coal fields.

China is has one of the fastest growmg economics in the world. Developing energy resources and greater accessto world markets will allow China to compete with western countries like the United States. China is skeptical ofcriticism by developed countries. They see this criticism as a blatant attempt to slow China's industrialization andfuture economic clout.FootnotesI Arthur Fisher, Popular Science2 attributed 10 Dai Qing, protester imprisoned in 1989 after she organized opposition 10 the project.Handout I

China's Three Gorges Dam ProjectCase Study Review Questions

1. What are the effects of industrialization on the landscape of the Three Gorges area?

2. How will building the dam affect the people who live there? Cite both positive affects aswell as negative affects.

3. Why do you think the Chinese government has committed a vast sum of money to thecompletion of the project? What do they hope to get out of the project?

\4. Do you believe this project is a good idea or a poor idea? Explain.

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