ABSTRACT
China’s Yangtze River flows 6400 km across the country—from mountain glaciers in Tibet through steep gorges and farmland all the way to Shanghai, on the East China Sea. The river supports substantial trade in its Delta region amounting to a fifth of China’s economy, and is habitat to many animals, including some endangered species. The notion of a dam on the Yangtze for flood control and hydroelectric power generation was first proposed by Sun Yat-Sen in 1919. While some survey work and planning was performed, the Chinese Civil War and other complications delayed the project. One goal of the Three Gorges Dam project was to reduce China’s reliance on coal-burning power plants, which contributed to carbon dioxide emissions and air pollution. The farmland lost in the submergence process had provided 40% of China’s grain and 70% of rice crops. The dam has induced erosion and contributed to increased earthquake activity and landslides in the region.
