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What did the fish say when it hit a wall?
“Dam!”
OK, bad joke, but it’s still one of my favorites.
China’s flooding and erosion problem, on the other hand, is no laughing matter.
“Chinese eco warning over giant dam”
Associated Press via CNN.com
September 26, 2007
BEIJING, China (AP) — China could face a catastrophe if it fails to quickly stop environmental problems such as flooding and erosion caused by the gigantic Three Gorges Dam, state media said Wednesday.
The dam, China’s showcase engineering triumph and the world’s biggest hydropower project, has been relentlessly promoted as a cure-all for devastating flooding on the Yangtze River, and a source of clean power for a nation attempting to wean itself off its heavy reliance on coal.
But a report on the Web site of the Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily said officials at a recent meeting also raised concerns over erosion and landslides on hills around the dam, along with problems caused by unplanned development.
“There are many new and old hidden ecological and environmental dangers concerning the Three Gorges Dam,” the report quoted senior officials as saying. “If preventive measures are not taken, the project could lead to a catastrophe.”
The state-run Xinhua News Agency said the size of the massive reservoir behind the Three Gorges Dam had started to erode the Yangtze’s banks in many places, which, “together with frequent fluctuations in water levels, had triggered a series of landslides.”
Story Highlights
- China warns of risk of environmental damage caused by Three Gorges Dam
- Dam promoted as cure for flooding, source of clean energy
- Officials concerned by erosion and landslides on hills around the dam
- $23.6 billion dam is the world’s biggest hydropower project
For additional resources:
- International Rivers Network - Three Gorges Dam
- A nonprofit network of volunteers, experts and activists committed to protecting the world’s rivers and its communities.
- Three Gorges Probe
- Published by Probe International, Three Gorges Probe provides uncensored coverage of China’s biggest damn and large-scale water projects
- Water Pollution Map
- Sponsored by the Institute of Public & Environmental Affairs, the interactive map provides national and regional data about China’s rivers, lakes and other bodies of water.
- PBS - Great Wall Across the Yangtze
- Shooting without government permission, filmmaker Ellen Perry examines the controversial lead-up to the construction of the world’s largest dam and hydroelectric power plant.
- NASA - Visible Earth
- Images and animation of the Yangtze River
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