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CHINAS THREE GORGES DAM by Olly Phillipson

PROJECT: AN UPDATE
ONSTRUCTION of Chinas
C ambitious Three Gorges Dam
Project, begun in 1994, is due for
Key
completion in 2008, a year ahead Three Gorges Dam Reservoir
of schedule. China is the worlds CHINA
Provincial boundary
most populated country, with over N
1 billion people, and has one of JIANGSU
Yellow
East China
the fastest growing economies. Sea Sea
Three HUBEI
The Chinese see the project not Gorges
SICHUAN
just as a way to control the river, Temple of
Dam
Yangtze Shanghai
Zhang Fei Yunyang
but also as a symbol of the Yichang
Wuchang River

countrys rapid growth and devel- Shibaozhai Badong Wuxue

ANHUI

opment into a modern world

Chongqing Fuling
economic power. It could also be East China
Boyang
just the first of several other large- Dongting Lake
Sea
Lake
scale projects. However, despite 0 200 km HUNAN
JIANGXI
being the largest dam and hydro-
Figure 1: The Three Gorges Dam Project
electric power (HEP) scheme in
the world, it is highly contro-
versial. GeoActive Series 19 Issue 1
Description Concrete
Fig 383_01 gravity dam
Mac/eps/illustrator 11 s/s
181NELSON
metres THORNES
high, 2.3 km wide
PUBLISHING
Figure 1 shows the River Yangtze Reservoir Artist:
660 km David Russell Illustration
long
(Chang Yiang) and the location of Water levels Original level = 65 metres above sea level
the new dam and its vast reservoir. June 2003 = 135 metres
The project is named after the October 2003 = 139 metres
Qutang, Wi and Xiling, three Sept 2006 = 156 metres
limestone river gorges found 2009 = est. 175 metres (145 during flood season)
along a 200 km section of the Power generators Left bank = 14 units x 700 MW
Yangtze in Hubei and Chongqing Right bank = 12 x 700 MW units
Underground = 6 x 700 MW units
provinces, upstream from
Capacity = 22.4 million KW
Yichang. The Yangtze, at 6,300
Power output 49.1 (2005)
km, is the worlds third longest (billion kW hours) 84.7 (2009 est.)
river. It drains an area of 1.8 100 (2011 est.)
million km2, and is home to a Shipping 2 x 5 2-way step lock systems on left bank, over 100
population of over 400 million metres change in water level
about a third of Chinas 1 x 1-way step elevator to lift ships
population supplying water to a Land submerged 632 km2
twelfth of the worlds people. Cost US$ 22.5 billion (disputed)

Aims Figure 2: Three Gorges Dam factfile

The Three Gorges Dam Projects
statistics are impressive (Figure 2).
The project has three main aims:
to reduce flooding
to improve navigation for shipping
to generate electricity via HEP.
For centuries the Yangtze has
flooded, causing over 300,000 Construction eventually began in
deaths during the 20th century 1994 (see Figure 3), with the last
alone 200,000 in the 1930s, concrete being poured in May
30,000 in 1954 and over 1,500 as 2006. The reservoir has gradually
recently as 1998. A dam to been filled with water, raising
control flooding was first levels from the Yangtzes original
proposed in 1919, but variously 65 metres above sea level, step by
fell in and out of favour. step, from 135, 156 and finally to

Series 19 Autumn issue Unit 383 Chinas Three Gorges Dam Project: an Update 2007 Nelson Thornes GeoActive Online
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 1919 Three Gorges Dam do so they have to by-pass the to carry over 500 million tonnes
first proposed dam itself via massive five-step of silt every year. Up to 50% of
1930s Over 200,000 deaths locks. Two of these have been this is now deposited behind the
by flooding. Area built on the left bank and are dam, and could quickly reduce the
surveyed designed to take barges of up to storage capacity of the reservoir.
1954 30,000 killed in floods. 10,000 tonnes. By the completion Decreased silt and sediment
Plans revived
196090 Plans dropped and
of the project there should also be downstream will cause increased
revived several times a one-way shiplift able to lift river and coastal erosion. This is
1992 Government approval 3,000 tonne ships in one step. shrinking the wetlands at the
finally granted mouth of the Yangtze near
199397 PHASE 1 The Three Gorges Dam Project is Shanghai, the winter home of
1994 Construction work easily the worlds largest HEP 95% of the remaining population
begins
1997 River Yangtze
scheme in terms of both size and of the endangered Siberian crane,
dammed power generation. In 2003 the at a rate of 4 km2 per year.
19982003 PHASE 2 first electricity from the new
19982002 Concrete pouring on power stations on the left bank of The water in the reservoir is
left bank the river was generated, followed becoming heavily polluted, from
2003 Concrete pouring on in 2007 by electricity from the shipping and waste discharged
right bank
right-bank generators. In 2011, from cities, eg Chongquing pumps
2003 Reservoir starts filling.
2003 First electricity when all 32 generators including in over 1 billion tonnes of
generated (left bank) 6 underground stations should untreated waste per year. Toxic
2004 5-way ship locks be completed and operating to full substances from factories, mines
officially opened capacity, it is hoped that they will and waste tips submerged by the
200409 PHASE 3 provide 10% of Chinas electricity reservoir are also being released
2006 20 May, concrete needs. Twenty-eight cities will be into the reservoir, eventually
pouring complete
2007 First electricity from
supplied by the project including moving downstream as water is
right bank Chongqing (above the dam) and released through the dam.
2008 One-way step ship Shanghai (on the coast). China
elevator scheduled to currently produces 80% of its The extent of the impact on the
open electricity from coal. Hydro- environment and specific
2009 Estimated completion electric power from the Three ecosystems like the wetlands is
(1 year early). May be
finished in 2008.
Gorges Dam is the equivalent of only just being seen. Altering the
2010 First electricity from 50 million tonnes of coal a year, natural flow of the Yangtze has
underground so it should help reduce pollution, contributed to the decline of the
generators especially harmful greenhouse gas baiji or Chinese river dolphin,
2011 Full generating emissions produced by burning thought to have become extinct in
capacity onstream fossil fuels. 2006. With less fresh water and
Figure 3: Important dates in the life sediment reaching the East China
of the project Problems Sea, especially during the summer,
The dam is already having a fish stocks may decline as the
175 metres. During times of high positive impact on flood control, number of phytoplankton they
risk, the water level is to be navigation and power generation, feed on falls. Deforestation, both
reduced to 145 metres to allow but it has also caused problems. during the construction of the
room for floodwater. The capacity Some have already had major dam and afterwards to provide
of the reservoir should reduce the effects, whilst others may cause land for people displaced by the
risk of flooding downstream from future difficulties. project, has affected local habitats
a 1 in 10 years event to a 1 in 100 and increased surface run-off into
years event. Not only will this The main purpose of the dam is to the reservoir, therefore increasing
benefit over 15 million people control flooding (although siltation.
living in high-risk flood areas, it flooding from tributaries
will also protect over 25,000 downstream will still take place). Although the Yangtze can now be
hectares of farmland. However, this can only happen by navigated by larger ships further
keeping levels in the reservoir low upstream, the increased traffic has
With the water flow able to be enough during high-risk times to frequently caused long delays at
controlled by the dam, the project store floodwater. Water levels the new five-way locks around the
should allow easier and safer could have an impact on how dam sometimes for several days.
navigation of the Yangtze. Raised much HEP can be generated. There have also been technical
water levels above the dam enable Another major concern is the difficulties with the planned
more and larger ships to navigate likely silting-up of the reservoir shiplock.
further upstream than before. To behind the dam. The Yangtze used

GeoActive Online Series 19 Autumn issue Unit 383 Chinas Three Gorges Dam Project: an Update 2007 Nelson Thornes
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2,500
2,000
Billion kilowatt hours
1,500
1,000
500
0
1994
Figure 4: Electricity generation in China, 19942004
Former Soviet
Union 9%
USA
22%
Figure 5: Carbon dioxide emissions from the consumption of energy, 2004
Source: EIA International Energy Annual
Most controversially, atNELSON
million people were forcibly
moved from their homes to
accommodate the dam, reservoir
and power stations. Those
displaced were promised compen-
sation for their losses, plus new
homes and jobs. Many have not
yet received this, and recent
newspaper articles in China have
admitted that so far over $30
million of the funds set aside for
this has been taken by corrupt
local officials. The money has
been used to pay debts, provide
wages for staff who dont exist
and given to people not affected
by the development. The reservoir
has also flooded fertile agricultural
land and over 8,000 historical
sites and monuments, including
the famous Zhang Fei temple.
Series 19 Autumn issue Unit 383 Chinas Three Gorges Dam Project: an Update 2007 Nelson Thornes
This page may be photocopied for use within the purchasing institution only.
Key
Conventional thermal
Hydro-electric
Nuclear
1996 1998 2000 2002
Year
GeoActive Series 19 Issue 1
Japan Fig 383_04 Mac/eps/illustrator 11 s/s
5% NELSON THORNES PUBLISHING
Artist: David Russell Illustration
Natural gas
Europe
Oil
17%
China
Coal
17%
Rest of World
30%
Total emissions
China: 4.7 billion metric tonnes
World: 27 billion metric tonnes
GeoActive Series 19 Issue 1
Fig 383_05 Mac/eps/illustrator 11 s/s
least 1.4 A further problem
THORNES PUBLISHING concerns the
Artist: David Russell Illustration
location of the dam in a tectoni-
cally active region, where earth-
quakes and landslides are
common. Whilst there have been
no major events so far, any earth
movement close to the dam and
reservoir could have disastrous
results.
During the construction of the
Three Gorges Dam, economic
growth in China has been far
more rapid than predicted. The
resulting increase in demand for
energy means that it is unlikely to
provide the 10% of electricity
originally estimated (Figure 4),
meaning that China will continue
to rely on coal to produce most of
the electricity it needs.
Acid rain from thermal power
stations (mainly coal) already
affects a third of China which has
15 of the worlds 20 most
polluted cities. Exempt from the
emissions reductions put in place
by the Kyoto Protocol, it is
predicted that it will soon
overtake the USA as the leading
producer of carbon dioxide
emissions (Figure 5), and there is
increasing pressure on China to
produce clean energy. This is
planned via the construction of
2004 more large-scale HEP schemes and
other renewable energy sources,
but China needs to find further
ways of reducing its total carbon
dioxide emissions. However, given
the increasing demand for energy,
there is unlikely to be a major
reduction in fossil fuel use in the
near future, despite the intro-
duction of new laws on renewable
energy by the government in
2006.
Conclusion
One of the worlds largest and
most controversial multi-purpose
river management schemes, the
Three Gorges Dam Project has
already had major social,
economic and environmental
impacts on the country and will
continue to do so in the future.
Despite this, it is likely to be the
first of many such massive
schemes, eg four new dams are
planned along the Yangtze and its
tributaries, including one that will
flood the spectacular Tiger
Leaping Gorge.
As China continues to develop its
economy, the need to provide
power, transport and water for a
population eager to enjoy the
benefits of increased prosperity
will continue to increase.
However, with such a vast
population, this demand will place
a huge strain both on its own and
on global resources.
GeoActive Online
Page 3 of 4
 Activities Location

Size
1 Explain what is meant by the Population
terms:
Main industries
siltation
displaced Other features

phytoplankton Figure 7: Framework for Chongqing factfile (Activity 10)

multi-purpose river management
scheme. Three Gorges Dam has had / may (b) With reference to your
have in the future. To begin, completed table, who are the
2 (a) What was the main reason place each of the six impacts biggest losers and the biggest
for building the Three Gorges below in the correct space (one winners? Explain your answer.
Dam? in each space), and then add any
(b) Why was this so important? others you can think of. 7 Why is the Three Gorges Dam
Project described as controversial?
3 Use the information from Over 1.4 million people displaced
Figures 2 and 3, and a large copy 8 Study Figure 5.
of the outline in Figure 6 below, Caused wetland areas to decrease (a) Describe and compare the
to draw a detailed timeline for the figures shown for Europe, the
Three Gorges Dam Project. HEP (compared with coal) reduces USA and China.
carbon dioxide emissions (b) Why is China predicted to
4 Why is the generation of become the leading emitter of
electricity from the dam via Provides safer navigation for shipping carbon dioxide in future?
hydro-electric power so important
Silting could reduce amount of HEP
to China? produced Research/extension
9 Find out in detail why China
5 (a) How has the project New homes provided was exempt from the Kyoto
affected the flow of the River Protocol.
Yangtze?
(b) What problems has this Advantages Disadvantages 10 Compile a factfile for the
created? industrial city of Chongqing. You
Social could use a framework like the
6 (a) Make a large copy of the one in Figure 7 above.
small table (right). Use it to Environment
summarise the different social, Economic 11 Undertake your own online
environmental and economic research into other planned
impacts that the building of the schemes for the Yangtze.

Some useful web links

1994 Construction work begins

International Rivers Network:

www.irn.org/programs/threeg/
1954 30,000 killed in floods

2003 Reservoir starts filling

China Three Gorges Project:

www.ctgpc.com/
Travel China Guide Photo Gallery:
www.travelchinaguide.com/picture/yan
gtze/three_gorges_dam/index.htm
Three Gorges Probe: www.three-
gorgesprobe.org/tgp/index.cfm
Chongquing: www.chongqing.org/
China - Energy Information
Administration(EIA):
www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/China/B
ackground.html
1919

1930

1940

1950

1960

1970

1980

1990

2000

2010

Figure 6: Timeline for the Three Gorges Dam Project (Activity 3)

GeoActive Online Series 19 Autumn issue Unit 383 Chinas Three Gorges Dam Project: an Update 2007 Nelson Thornes
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