Three Gorges Dam The Worlds Largest Hydro-Electric Plant

What is it? A 2,300m energy powerhouse that spans the Yangtze River in central China. Built in multiple stages, the dam contains enough steel to build 63 Eiffel Towers, and is the 3 rd dam built on the Yangtze. Some of the dam’s features will include 34 generators, each 6,000 tonnes. Ship locks, a ship lift, and state of the art flood controls will be installed for the millions that live downstream of the dam. Construction began in December 1994 and will be completed in The Three Gorges Dam will produce one-ninth of China's power upon completion.

The Yangtze River 6,300km long river divides North and South China, culturally and economically important, it is the 3 rd longest river in the world. Very polluted, flanked with heavy industry. One of the world’s biggest waterways, it is a crucial connector of the interior to the coast. 31 major cities lie along it’s banks. Flooding has been a major problem for thousands of years.

The Yangtze River Watershed

Benefits Will produce 22,500 MW (MegaWatts) of electricity when fully operational. By completion, the dam will have generated TWh (TeraWatt-Hours) of energy, already covering more than a third of the project cost. Reduces air pollutant and greenhouse gas emission because it is hydroelectric, potentially dropping coal usage by 31 million tonnes a year, and 100 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. Provides controlled flooding and drought relief to the farmland, cities, and industrial areas adjacent to the Yangtze downstream. Along with the dam, 50 new waste-water treatment plants have been installed, dumping 65% of treated water into the reservoir. Irrigation and agriculture benefits from drought relief during dry seasons were predicted to create about 6,000 square kilometers of forest in 2008.

Criticism Flooding of the reservoir has displaced 1.3 million people, and flooded archaeological and cultural sites. Construction has cost approximately 26 billion USD. The dam has functioned in the critical endangerment or extinction of the Siberian Crane and the Baiji (the Yangtze River dolphin). The dam reduces the river’s flushing capacity, leading to increased pollution. Erosion of the Three Gorges Area is causing excessive silt deposition in the dam reservoir, creating efficiency problems and preventing the stabilizing of China’s coastal areas from sedimentation and deposition at the river mouth. The dam lies across a seismic fault, earthquakes have caused hairline cracks to form at the base of the dam. Frequent landslides occur due to the raised water level, eroding the reservoir and leading to noticeable disturbance.

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