{"id":1819,"date":"2011-05-20T10:47:53","date_gmt":"2011-05-20T14:47:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/?p=1819"},"modified":"2011-05-20T10:49:56","modified_gmt":"2011-05-20T14:49:56","slug":"three-gorges-dam-generates-big-problems","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/?p=1819","title":{"rendered":"Three Gorges Dam Generates Big Problems"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Michael Wines, NEW YORK TIMES, May 19, 2011<\/em><\/p>\n

\"image\"<\/a> The Three Gorges Dam, the world’s largest hydroelectric project and a symbol of China<\/a>\u2019s confidence in risky technological solutions, is troubled by urgent pollution and geologic problems, a high-level government body acknowledged Thursday.<\/p>\n

The statement came as technicians were certifying the very last of the dam\u2019s array of generators as suitable for hydroelectric generation, the final step in a contentious 19-year effort to complete the project in defiance of domestic and international concerns over its safety as well as threats to the environment, displaced people, historical areas and natural beauty.<\/p>\n

According to official figures, the venture cost China about $23 billion, but outside experts estimate it may have cost double that amount. The dam has been plagued by reports of floating archipelagoes of garbage, carpets of algae and landslides on the banks along the vast expanse of still water since the 600-foot-tall dam on the Yangtze River was completed in 2006. Critics also have complained that the government has fallen far short of its goals in helping to resettle the 1.4 million people displaced by the rising waters behind the dam.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s State Council<\/a>, a coordinating body often likened to the United States president\u2019s cabinet, said in a vague statement that the project suffered from a wide range of serious problems. \u201cAlthough the Three Gorges project provides huge comprehensive benefits, urgent problems must be resolved regarding the smooth relocation of residents, ecological protection and geological disaster prevention,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n

The huge dam is meeting the government\u2019s goal of producing pollution-free electric power, the government said, generating 84 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity last year. But critics say the sheer weight of water backed up in the 410-mile-long reservoir behind the dam has increased the danger of earthquakes and landslides. The government has acknowledged that risk, but denied that the project played any role in China\u2019s powerful May 2008 quake in Sichuan Province, in which at least 87,000 people died.<\/p>\n

Environmentalists say the lake has become a repository for the waste dumped by cities and industries.<\/p>\n

Even the dam\u2019s ability to regulate the notoriously changeable flow of the 3,900-mile-long Yangtze, one of China\u2019s two major rivers, has been called into question. Faced with a historic drought<\/a> this spring, cities downstream of the dam have been unable to accommodate oceangoing vessels that usually visit their ports, and about 400,000 residents of Hubei Province lost access to drinking water this month. [Read rest of story]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

China’s Three Gorges Dam has lived up to many of its negative expectations, and then some. Its reservoir is a dumping ground, its geologic effects may be dire and its effect on water tables and water flow may be deleterious.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":""},"categories":[17,353],"tags":[1133,1135,1137,1132,1130,1134,1131,1136],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1819"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1819"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1819\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1821,"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1819\/revisions\/1821"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itstheenvironmentstupid.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}