EA - Rivers of Life Lesson

Rivers of Life

There are two major river systems that provide fresh water to the vast agricultural regions of China Proper. The Yellow River (Huang He River) is named after the light-colored silt that washes into the river. It flows from the Tibetan highlands through the North China Plain into the Yellow Sea. Dams, canals, and irrigation projects along the river provide water for extensive agricultural operations. Crops of wheat, sorghum, corn, and soybeans are common with vegetables, fruit, and tobacco grown in smaller plots. The North China Plain is vital to the Chinese population because it is the area responsible for producing enough food to feed the large population.

The Yangtze River (Chang Jiang River) flows out of the Tibetan Plateau, through the Three Gorges region, and ends at its mouth in the East China Sea. Agricultural production along the river includes extensive rice and wheat farming. The large cities along the river include Wuhan and Chongqing. Nanjing and Shanghai are situated near the delta on the coast.

 

The Three Gorges Dam 

Three Gorges Dam (The New China Dam)

The Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River is known in China as the New China Dam. It is the world's largest dam and the largest producer of hydroelectric power on Earth. The building of the Three Gorges Dam created controversy, with convincing arguments on both sides of the issue. Dam development projects tend to have an enormous impact on people and the environment. It is for this reason that the benefits and disadvantages of such projects must be carefully weighed.

History

Before the construction of the dam, flooding along the Yangtze cost thousands of lives and billions of dollars in damage. In 1954, the river flooded, causing the deaths of more than thirty-three thousand people. In addition, the floods displaced an additional eighteen million people. In 1998, a similar flood caused billions of dollars in damage, flooded thousands of acres of farmland, resulted in more than 1,526 deaths, and displaced more than 2.3 million people.

The main purposes of the dam are to control the massive flooding along the Yangtze, produce hydroelectric power, and increase shipping capacity along the river.  

Controls Flooding

The dam was rigorously tested in 2009 when a massive flood worked its way through the waterway. The dam was able to withstand the pressure by containing the excess water and controlling the flow downstream. The dam saved many lives and prevented billions of dollars in potential damage.

Produces Electricity

The dam produces most of the electricity for the lower Yangtze Basin, including Shanghai, the largest city in China. This reduces the emission of millions of tons of carbon dioxide, sulfur, and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere, which reduces air pollution and does not contribute to climate change.

Provides Transportation and Shipping Capacity

The Yangtze River is a valuable and vital transportation corridor for the transport of goods. Sichuan is among the top five provinces in China in terms of population and depends on the Yangtze River system to provide for its needs and connect it with the rest of China.

All the positive attributes of the Three Gorges Dam have contributed to the economic development of China. This is a testimony to the engineering and technological capacity of the nation. However, this project has also created its own problems and negative impacts on culture and the environment.

The Disadvantages of the Dam 

Relocation

By 2008, the number of people forced to relocate from the flooding of the reservoir had reached 1.24 million. Historic villages and hundreds of archaeological sites were flooded. Thousands of farmers had to be relocated to places with less productive soil. Sadly, much of the scenic beauty of the river basin is now underwater.

Animal species like the critically endangered Siberian Cranes, who had wintered in the former wetlands of the river, had to find habitat elsewhere. The endangered Yangtze River Dolphin has been doomed to extinction because of the dam and the amplified river activity.

Pollution

The dam restricts the flushing of water pollution and creates a massive potential for landslides along its banks, exacerbating the potential for the silting in of the reservoir and the clogging of the dam's turbines.

Future Concern

The dam also sits on a fault zone and there is concern that the massive weight of the water in the reservoir could trigger earthquakes that may destroy the dam, with catastrophic consequences.

 

RESOURCES IN THIS MODULE ARE OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES (OER) OR CREATED BY GAVS UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED. SOME IMAGES USED UNDER SUBSCRIPTION.