3. Historical roots of construction of 3GD
Specifications of 3GD
Dam politics & critical issues including
resettlement issues
4. Early Stage
◦ First suggested by Sun Yat-sen in 1919 – potential
for a large scale hydroelectricity generation
◦ Feasibility Study by US in the 30s & Soviet Union in
1955
Consensus building in the 1950s-1970s
◦ On-going debates on feasibility Great Leap
Forward (1958-1961) & Cultural Revolution (1966-
1976) discussion halted
◦ Gezhouba Dam – a testing ground for resolving
technical issues
Construction 1970-75 planned completed in 1989
5. Reform period (1978~)
◦ More electricity for development required
US Bureau of Reclamation study in the early 1980s
◦ Opposition – Political Consultation Committee, ‘No’
& unfavourable public views (Dai Qing)
Breakthrough in Tiananmen Square in 1989
◦ Emblematic event – opposition died, strong
censorship on the media, big flood events in 1991
◦ Endorsed in 1992
6. Primary purposes
◦ Flood control
One of the most flood-prone areas
◦ Hydro-electricity generation
Essential for central & eastern China, substituting 40
million tons of coal/year
◦ Enhancement of inland navigation
Golden Waterway – accounting for 80% of China’s
waterborne traffic
Further project details
◦ China Three Gorges Corporation Webpage
http://www.ctgpc.com.cn/en/index.php
7. Items Contents
Construction period 1994-2009
Location Sandouping near Yichang, Hubei Province
Total Cost* RMB 200 billion (US$ 24 billion)
Size of reservoir 600 km long
Height 175 m
Generation capacity 18.2GW (World No.1)
No. of resettlement 1.4 million
* Financing – 3 ways
1) 3GD Construction Fund, collected by levying RMB 0.015/kw of
electricity sold annually
2) Revenue from Gezhouba Dam
3) Domestic loans – the China Construction Bank
15. Political significance
◦ Undemocratic decision-making
Little access to & manipulation of information
Lack of freedom of speech (Dai Qing’s arrestment)
◦ Approval in midst of fierce opposition
◦ Favorable conditions – 1989, flood in 1991, Li Peng
Leadership & actors
◦ Central government institutions – 3GD Construction
Committee under the State Council
◦ 3GD Development firm, 3G Project Office – allocation of
funds & construction
◦ Relationship between office & localities
Responsibility of treating wastewater local governments
Financially poor, bankrupt (Wanzhou)
16. The State Council
3GD Project Construction
Committee
3GD Project
3GD Project Office
Development
Corporation
3GD Project Ecological &
3GD Resettlement Environmental Protection
Office Coordinating Small Group
17. Critical issues
◦ Human impacts – 1.4 million resettlement, more?
◦ Engineering concerns – alternative option, small dams?
◦ Cost over-run? – US$ 24 billion planned, more?
◦ Environmental effects – siltation, toxic
wastes, earthquakes, rare species (white river dolphins)
◦ Water pollution – urban wastewater, toxic wastes
(discharged from Chongqing Municipality, 40 million)
◦ Disease risks – malnutrition for relocatees, lack of
medical services
Wenchuan Earthquake, May 2008
◦ 7.9 Richter scale earthquake, perhaps caused by the
Zipingu Dam, 5.5km away
◦ 80,000 people killed, 5 million homes lost
◦ Three Gorges Dam?
18.
19. Present state of 3GD Project
◦ 1st Phase: 1994-1997, 2nd Phase : 1998-2003
◦ 3rd Phase: 2004-2009 (November)
◦ Water level reached full capacity (175 m), 26 Oct
2010
26 generators to produce 84.7 bil kw/h, annually (6
more generators installed)
Government audit in early 2006
◦ No corruption so far but resettlement problem
acknowledged later
◦ By end of 2003, misuse of US$ 7 million of funds
for relocation, US$ 5.38 million retrieved
20. Wushan, village affected by 3GD
◦ Many not received compensation, Yunyang county, RMB
20,000 planned to allocated to each family, eventually only
10,800
◦ Less job creation – laid off from SOEs
◦ Tourism – stinky & stagnated pool of water
◦ Landslide – moving the resettled up to hills in 99 & 03
◦ Many farmers forced to use their life savings on mortgages
to pay for the new homes with US$ 25/month
Challenges since its operation (as of Oct 2010, AFP)
◦ Landslides & mudflows: forced relocation of additional
28,000 people, caused by rising water
◦ Layers of trash & debris building up in the reservoir
threatening to jam the dam
200,000 m3 of rubbish collected per annum 80 Olympic
size pools, discharged by over 150 million people upstream
21. 3GD – Engine for modernization?
◦ Flood control, hydroelectricity generation &
navigation
◦ Critical issues
Dam politics
◦ Water flows uphill to power & money
◦ Sanctioned discourse
Hydraulic Mission
◦ Not reached the post-modernism yet
◦ More development for the next stage against all
odds?
22. Dams for China
◦ Negative environmental impacts – developed countries
decommissioning dams, i.e. US
◦ Hydropower/flood control – essential for China’s
modernization?
Yangtze drought (Guardian, 25 May 2010)
◦ Jan-April drought, Hubei worst hit 40% less than average
◦ Damage to crops, threatening wildlife, qustions on
viability of SNWT Project
◦ A release of 5 bil m3 water from 3GD
◦ Sacrifice of hydroelectricity for irrigation, drinking water
& ecosystem protection (finless porpoise)
Why drought? Ma Jun, due to 3GD!
23. Three Gorges Dam (Discovery Channel, 2007)
◦ 1998 Flood event: justification of 3GD
◦ Three Gorges Dam – specifications
◦ Energy (hydroelectricity), Coal, CO2
◦ Tourism & inland navigation
◦ Resettlement issues: 1.13 mil, 4,000 villages
◦ Dam safety: siltation, earthquakes
Essential for China’s future?
