Three Gorges Project: A Project of the Century

By: Xinyu Huang

Introduction A dream of nearly one century:

first proposed in 1920’s Site survey and geotechnic

measure in 1940’s Feasibility study and design during

1950’s to 1990’s Construction phase: 1993-2009

Yangtze River & Three Gorges

Three Gorges

Scenic Site Views

Three Gorges Project

Capacity: 39.3 billion c. m. Annual power generation:

84.7 billion kwhr Length: 2,335 m Earth work: 125 million c.

m.; Concrete work: 26 million c. m.;

Residents resettle: nearly 1 million (budget: 5 billion USD)

Project volume: 6 billion USD

Proposed Functions

Control the flood Improve river

transportation Generate power Boost economy

The project construction

Three phases 1993-1997 1998-2003 2004-2009

Employees: 20,000~30,000

The project management Construction

Manager: The Three Gorge Development Corp.

International open bid, e.g., turbine-generator contract was awarded to a Canadian-German consortium.

Problems accompanying Population resettle

Problems accompanying Submerged cities

A project of great controversy Criticism

Negative impact to ecological system High economic cost Potential opportunity to earthquake Population resettlement Safety problems Corruption

A good lesson – Aswan Dam

Aswan High Dam Project

Proposed benefits of Aswan

Benefits Controlling the annual floods on the Nile

and prevents the damage Providing about a half of Egypt's power

supply Improving navigation along the river by

keeping the water flow consistent

During construction of Aswan

About 18 years of work

Over US$1 billion

Over 90,000 Nubians were relocated

The Temple of Abu Simel was shifted

Hazards brought by Aswan Seepage and evaporation accounts for a loss of about

12-14% of the annual input into the reservoir The sediments of the Nile have been filling the reservoir

and thus decreasing its storage capacity The Nile delta is having problems due to the lack of

sediment Poor drainage of the newly irrigated lands has led to

saturation and increased salinity. Over half of Egypt's farmland is now rated medium to

poor soils.

Aswan: A limited success

Conclusion: As a structure Aswan project is a success, but in its effect on the ecology of the Nile Basin, most of which could have been predicted, it is a failure (Florman, 1976). It is a great mistake made by civil engineers.