Officials behind the massive Three Gorges Dam are preparing to
plug any holes in the project even as waters in its reservoir peak
in two years.
Since the 2,309-m-long dam was erected in 2003, the water level
in the reservoir has risen in stages, reaching 156 m last year.
While the level is scheduled to reach a maximum height of 175 m
above sea level in 2009, there have been fears that rising waters
from the world's largest hydropower project will further strain
shores and trigger landslides.
"The government is closely monitoring and intensifying repair
work, and I think we can avoid losses as far as possible," Wang
Xiaofeng, director of the Office of Three Gorges Project
Construction Committee said yesterday.
A total of 12 billion yuan ($1.6 billion) has been allocated in
the past few years for geological repairs in the area - already a
geologically sensitive region previously.
"I would describe it as effective control," Wang told a press
conference organized by the State Council Information Office.
"Of course effective control doesn't mean that in the future
there won't be any landslides or threats that arise."
Li Yong'an, the general manager of the China Yangtze River Three
Gorges Project Development Corp, said the dam had not triggered any
"major" landslides along the mainstream of the Yangtze.
Government organs at all levels have also set up specialist
teams and mobilized residents to detect possible geological
disasters, to avoid or minimize losses as the water level keeps
rising.
Apart from preventing geological disasters, the environmental
impact of the Three Gorges Dam has been less than originally
forecast, experts have said.
Pan Jiazheng, a research fellow with the Chinese Academy of
Sciences, said that careful planning has seen silt accumulation at
the reservoir being less than 40 percent of the annual projected
figure.
The water quality in the main sections of the Yangtze River is
generally stable, and algae bloom condition has not reached the
State warning levels.
Wang stressed that the Three Gorges Dam is providing a cleaner
source of energy and has also played an important role in taming
the Yangtze and controlling floods.
"We are going to be able to weather the worst flooding in 1,000
years," he said.
A thermal power plant of the same capacity as the Three Gorges
hydropower project will burn 50 million tons of coal and discharge
100 million tons of carbon dioxide a year, he said.
Aside from improving shipping conditions and ensuring power
supply, the project also aims to protect the area's ecological
environment, Wang said.
As of the end of September, more than 1.22 million people had
been resettled, under the guidance of a special immigration rule
ensuring the interests of those relocated, he said.
Apart from the 34 billion yuan ($4.38 billion) used for
relocation, efforts are also being made to create more jobs for the
resettled population, Wang said.
(China Daily November 28, 2007)