China Daily, 2011-05-26 08:03
By Wang Qian (China Daily)
BEIJING - China's land watchdog has asked local authorities to
strengthen efforts in monitoring potential geological disasters in the
Three Gorges Dam region.
Until June 10, the Three Gorges Dam plans to increase water discharges
up to 12,000 cubic meter per second (about 3,000 cu m per second more
than water flowing in), which enhances the risks of landslides and bank
collapses, China National Radio quoted Guan Fengjun, director of the
department of geological environment under the Ministry of Land and
Resources, as saying on Wednesday.
"The sudden increase of water discharges from the dam will crash the
bank, making the shores unstable," Guan said.
Experience shows newly built reservoirs face intensified landslides,
shore collapses and flooding in the first three to five years after
operation, and the Three Gorges Dam is no exception.
Since May, the dam has gradually increased water discharges to relieve a
severe drought in central and eastern parts of the country, raising the
record-low water level of the downstream lakes, irrigating farmlands and
meeting the demand for water.
As of Friday, nearly 1.6 billion cu m of water has been discharged from
the dam to the lower reaches, which has raised the water level of the
downstream rivers by more than 2 meters since May 4, according to
statistics from the Office of State Flood Control and Drought Relief
Headquarters.
A statement from the State Council released in mid-May, said urgent
problems, such as ecological protection, water transport and geological
disaster prevention must be solved and vowed to establish a disaster
alert system.
Since the start of the dam's operation in 2003, extreme weather such as
flooding and droughts, as well as geological disasters, have been
frequent in the region and many blame the dam.
A report on the protection and development of the Yangtze River in 2007
said the dam speeds up water evaporation, decreasing the water volume
downstream.
The report said slight earthquakes have become frequent after the dam
began operation, and about 4,719 bank collapses and landslides were
detected from 2003 to 2007.
Ma Jun, director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs,
said the large dam greatly changes the natural situation, threatening
downstream biodiversity and water transport.
But Wang Hai, director of the transport division of the Three Gorges
Corporation, told China Daily on Wednesday the worries are groundless.
"The volume of water is still far less than the natural water level from
the upper Yangtze River before the construction of the dam," Wang said,
so damage from water would be reduced.
Chang Xiaolin, a professor at Wuhan University, said the water capacity
of the Three Gorges Dam is very small compared to the volume of water
flowing in the Yangtze River and would have a limited impact.
The dam has cost more than 180 billion yuan ($27.6 billion) and forced
the relocation of 1.3 million people to make way for the reservoir.
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