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The Three Gorges Dam project is a massive effort. In fact, this project is
the largest hydroelectric project in the history of the world. This project was
first proposed in 1920 by Dr. Sun Yat Sen. The project was to generate from
15,000 to 20,000 megawatts of electricity power and improve the navigation along
the river. The project was started in the early 1990s. The dam is 6,312 feet
long and 594 feet high. It will create a reservoir about 375 miles long (575
feet deep, with an average width of 3,600 feet), permanently submerge about
150,000 acres, including at least 20 towns, 16 archeological sites and resettle
1.4 million people. It's designed to generate over 18,000 megawatts of
electricity, provide flood management, and improve navigation of the upper
Yangtze River. That will allow 10,000-ton ocean-faring cargo ships and cruise liners
to navigate 1,500 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean to the port city of
Chongqing even during the dry season (fall and winter).
Needles to say, it is highly controversial, so here are the arguments:
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Issue
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Criticism
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Defense
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Cost
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The dam will far exceed the official cost estimate,
and the investment will be unrecoverable as cheaper power sources become
available and lure away ratepayers.
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The dam is within budget, and updating the
transmission grid will increase demand for its electricity and allow the
dam to pay for itself.
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Resettlement
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The 1.4 million relocated people are worse off than
before and their human rights are being violated.
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15 million people downstream will be better off due to
electricity and flood control.
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Environment
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Water pollution and deforestation will increase, the
coastline will be eroded and the altered ecosystem will further endanger
many species.
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Hydroelectric power is cleaner than coal burning and
safer than nuclear plants, and steps will be taken to protect the
environment.
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Local culture and natural beauty
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The reservoir will flood many historical sites and
ruin the legendary scenery of the gorges and the local tourism industry.
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Many historical relics are being moved, and the
scenery will not change that much.
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Navigation
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Heavy siltation will clog ports within a few years and
negate improvements to navigation.
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Shipping will become faster, cheaper, safer and
available year-round as the rapid waters are tamed and ship locks are
installed.
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Power generation
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Technological advancements have made hydrodams
obsolete, and a decentralized energy market will allow ratepayers to
switch to cheaper, cleaner power supplies.
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The alternatives are not viable yet and there is a
huge potential demand for the relatively cheap hydroelectricity.
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Flood control
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Siltation will decrease flood storage capacity, the
dam will not prevent floods on tributaries, and more effective flood
control solutions are available.
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The huge flood storage capacity will lessen the
frequency of major floods. The risk that the dam will increase flooding
is remote.
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We, of course, heard the party line:
- It will save thousands of lives lost to periodic disastrous flooding.
- It will make the Yangtze navigable year round
- It will generate electricity for the expanding economy.
Whatever the arguments, there is one incontrovertible fact: it is being
built.
Here is the model of the completed dam in the visitors center, looking
upriver. From left to right the sections are:
 | Powerhouse no.2 (the last section to be built.) |
| Sluice gates to release water downstream at a steady rate. |
| Powerhouse no. 1 |
| Ship elevator to allow rapid transit for smaller ships. |
| Existing headland |
| Double 5-stage locks, one for upriver, one for downriver. |
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June 2003 update: The dam reached its
interim height of 135 meters on June 10, 2003. The
European Space Agency satellite "CHRIS" took this picture on June
30, 2003. It shows the water filling behind the dam. The water is
being released downstream through the sluice gates creating the white
turbulence below the dam. The ship locks are now in operation
along the right side of the dam. |
NOTE: The only way that I could find to convey an overall impression
of the size of this thing was via the following panoramic shots.
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 Looking
downriver we see that the foundations of all but powerhouse no. 2 are
complete.
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 From
the top of the headland we can peer down into the locks. The river is held
back by a temporary earthen dam. A couple of the massive doors have
already been installed at the downriver end.
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| There are some cars on the road across the construction site from us.
The lock doors are over 100 feet tall. That gives you some idea of the
scale of this thing. Now look at the picture below, taken from the same
place. The locks are at the far left end. The dam is at the right. In the
foreground are barracks for some of the laborers. The engineers and
officials live in high-rise buildings downriver, past the locks. This will
become a resort area when the construction is finished. |
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O.K. Now we have the big picture, so I can go ahead and show you some of the
little pictures.
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