1. World's Largest Water Conservation
Project
China's Three Gorges Project is the largest
water conservation project in the world.
Taking the total amount of
concrete work as one example, the Three Gorges Project totals 26.43 million
cubic meters, 2.5 times the figure for the Gezhouba Barrage project and twice
that of the Itaipu project in Brazil, which is currently the largest water
conservation projects in the world. The main construction targets of the Three
Gorges Project are:
-- Removing 102.59 million cubic meters of stone and
earth and filling with 29.33 million cubic meters of stone and earthwork;
-- Mixing and pouring 27.15 million cubic meters of cement;
--
Erecting 281,000 tons of metal structures;
-- Making and erecting
354,000 tons of reinforcing bars;
-- Building 231,000 square meters of
leak-proof concrete walls;
-- Installing power generators with a
combined capacity of 18.2 million kilowatts.
China now boasts a
contingent of approximately 250,000 workers employed in constructing the water
conservation and hydropower projects. Their experience in building concrete
gravity dams, hydropower plants, and large ship locks have prepared them to
build the Three Gorges Project.
2.
World's Largest Hydropower Plant
Upon completion,
the Three Gorges Project will be the world's biggest hydropower plant in terms
of both total installed capacity and annual average power generation volume.
Twenty-six turbine generator sets, with a per-unit generation capacity
of 700,000 kilowatts, will be installed on the left and right banks of the Three
Gorges Hydropower Station. The overall generation capacity is estimated at 18.2
million kilowatts. The annual power generation is estimated to average 84.68
billion kilowatt hours (KWH), equivalent to one-seventh of China's total in
1992.
The Three Gorges Hydropower Station will be hooked up with thermal
power and hydroelectric grids in central and eastern China, thus improving the
economy and reliability of the electric grids.
Moreover, China has
mapped out state energy strategies by transporting coal resources in northern
China to the southern regions and transmitting electricity generated from the
western parts to eastern localities in a bid to ease the energy shortage in
central and eastern China.
3. Three
Gorges Project to Take 17 Years
The ongoing Three
Gorges Project, which will be the world's largest water conservation facility
when completed, will take 17 years to build.
Construction of the project
consists of three stages.
The preparatory and first-phase projects spans
five years from 1993-1997, whose completion is signaled by the damming of the
Yangtze River on November 8.
The second phase will run from 1998 to
2003. This phase will be completed when the first generating unit in the
left-bank power plant goes on line and the permanent ship lock begins operation.
The third phase is planned for 2004-2009. This final phase includes the
completion of all 26 electricity-producing turbogenerators.
On October
14, 1997, the 63rd Executive meeting of the State Council set November 8 as the
date to block the Yangtze River. That will mark the end of the first phase
construction and the beginning of the second phase.
color=#008080>4. Fund sources
-- The
Three Gorges Dam Construction Fund
-- Revenue Gezhouba Power Plant
--
Policy loans China Development Bank
-- Loans domestic foreign commercial
banks
-- Corporate bonds
5. Dam Won't Affect Navigation on Yangtze
River
The Yangtze River, the world's third longest,
is one of China's leading transportation routes. One guarantee made by
developers of the Three Gorges Project ensures smooth navigation at the
construction site during the six-year second phase (1997-2003).
A water
diversion channel opened formerly on October 6. During the next-phase
construction through 2003, ships will use the channel to bypass the dam site or
use temporary locks now being built on the north bank of the Yangtze.
Engineers said that ships can safely pass through the channel except for
peak water flow seasons. When the water flows faster than 25,000 cubic meters
per second, it could be difficult for large ships to use the channel. The
maximum flow for smaller ships is between 10,000 and 15,000 cubic meters per
second.
Temporary ship locks are being built to ensure safe passage
during the flood season which normally begins in May.
The diversion
channel will guarantee that passenger and cargo transport needs are met in the
upper reaches of the Yangtze river during construction.
Permanent ship
locks will be in operation after the year 2003.
color=#008080>6. Three Gorges Reservoir
Inundation
The Three Gorges Reservoir will inundate
632 sq. km., the world's largest inundated area by a single project.
The
normal water level of 175 meters will be achieved in the year 2003, with the
reservoir covering 1,045 sq.km. and stretching some 663 km, an area capable of
controlling floods expected to occur twice in one decade.
The
resettlement effort and the area to be inundated are unprecedented in Chinese
history, with inundation affecting 365 townships in 21 counties, cities or
districts in Sichuan and Hubei provinces.
Some 844,000 people are
scheduled for resettlement, with unforeseen factors most likely raising the
figure to 1.2 million people.
The Three Gorges Reservoir will inundated
31,000 hectares of farmland, and will require the relocation of 1,599 industrial
and mining enterprises, as well as power transmission and telecommunications
facilities, harbors, small and medium-sized hydro-electric power plants, roads
and pumping stations.
The new reservoir, typical of facilities in
gorges, will not have a so-called "big-belly" section similar to other
facilities built on lakes.
7. Charm of
Three Gorges to Remain
The Three Gorges, one of the
world's most famous scenic sites around Qutang, Wuxian and Xiling, features
breathtaking scenery which attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists from at
home and abroad each and every year.
The charming scenery will be left
untouched following the damming of the mid-section of the Xiling Gorge.
The high-water mark once the dam is completed will stand at 82.8 meters,
or four meters higher than before.
However, the rise in the water level
will have little impact on scenery in the Three Gorges which sit at an elevation
of some 1,000 meters above sea level. The charm of the famous landmark will
remain unchanged the year 2009 when the high-water mark will rise by some 100
meters.
A spectacular waterfall formed by the steep incline of the Three
Gorges dike will offer a new site expected to attract an incessant stream of
tourists. Scenic landscapes, including Badong Shennong Stream, the Gezi River
Stone Forest and the Shuangxi Karst Caves are either under construction or will
be built in the near future.
8.
Preliminary Success Scored in Three Gorges Resettlement
Drive
Some 90,000 local residents are expected to
move out of the reservoir area of the Three Gorges Project by the end of this
year, leading to a favorable start of the massive resettlement drive.
The Three Gorges Project will relocate 1.2 million residents in the
1,084 sq km-reservoir area, since the reservoir is expected to inundate more
than 630 sq km of land behind the Three Gorges Dam.
To this end, China
will inject approximately 100 billion yuan into the relocation of the reservoir
residents by the year 2009 when the whole project is completed.
"The
State appropriations into the resettlement endeavor have been on a steady rise,
from the 300 million yuan in 1993, to 2.8 billion yuan this year. And the sum
will increase continuously in the future," according to an official with the
Bureau of Resettlement and Development under the Three Gorges Project
Construction Commission.
Along with the resettlement drive, the State
also plans to invest more than 20 billion yuan on the upgrading of local
infrastructure and construction of major industrial projects.
"In many
areas surrounding the Three Gorges Project site, the annual state investment at
present is equivalent to, or even exceeds the combined total in the past 40-plus
years," said the resettlement official.
State preferential policies, on
the other hand, enabled the Three Gorges Reservoir Area to open itself wider to
the outside world and may have more far-reaching positive impact on its future
development, added the official.
Over the past few years, the Three
Gorges Reservoir Area already emerged as a hot destination for overseas
investment. To date, over 470 foreign-funded ventures have landed in the city of
Yichang, in the vicinity of the project, drawing a total of 1.5 billion US
dollars in overseas funds.
"In spite of the preliminary success, even
more difficulties are involved in the resettlement drive, but we are optimistic
with its final success," said the official.
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