� August 2, 2010, 4:47 PM HKT
Trash Threatens Three Gorges
China�s state-controlled media continues to punch holes in the image
of the mighty Three Gorges Dam.
The latest poke came via China Daily, the English-language government-
run newspaper. In an article Monday, the paper warns a thick layer of
garbage washed into the reservoir by torrential rains could jam a key
floodgate on the world�s biggest dam.
Photos show cranes lifting up grayish lumps of tree branches, plastic
bags and bottles and other household trash spreading across the
reservoir like a layer of lumpy oatmeal. See a slideshow of the scene.
�The large amount of waste in the dam area could jam the miter gate of
the Three Gorges Dam,� Chen Lei, Three Gorges engineer, told the China
Daily.
China has been coping with the deadliest floods in decades, with some
1,000 killed, stressing China�s poorly built infrastructure. Bridges
have collapsed and authorities are rushing to reinforce dams and
reservoirs cracking under the pressure.
Authorities have spoken publicly about problems at other dams, but
this year�s unprecedented frankness about the Three Gorges in state
media raises other questions. One of the Three Gorges biggest selling
points was its ability to tame flooding on the Yangtze River. Critics
say the dam could never live up to overhyped expectations on flood
control.
In the past, domestic criticism was squashed as long as the dam�s
chief proponent, former Premier Li Peng, had influence.
In the arcane shadow puppetry of China politics, perhaps all this
trash talking against a project so closely linked to the former
premier reflects some hidden political message?
� Shai Oster
----
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jbtMoJjWaXUSd5LJcWDkJg7eZmKQ
Trash threatens to jam China's Three Gorges dam
(AFP) � 11 hours ago
BEIJING � Layers of trash floating in the Yangtze river are
threatening to jam China's massive Three Gorges hydroelectric dam,
state media reported Monday.
The garbage is so thick in parts of the river that people can walk on
the surface, reports said.
Nearly three tonnes of refuse are collected from the dam every day,
but operators are struggling with inadequate manpower and equipment as
trash accumulates more quickly due to rain-triggered floods, the China
Daily reported.
"The large amount of waste in the dam area could jam the mitre gate (a
type of lock gate) of the Three Gorges Dam," Chen Lei, an official
with the China Three Gorges Corporation, told the newspaper.
More than 150 million people live upstream from the dam. In several
nearby cities, household garbage is dumped directly into the river --
China's longest -- because municipalities are unequipped for trash
disposal.
Chen said 160,000 cubic metres (5.7 million cubic feet) of trash was
collected from the dam last year.
The China Three Gorges Corporation spends about 10 million yuan (1.5
million dollars) per year to clear floating waste, the newspaper said.
In some regions, the layers of garbage are so thick that people can
literally walk on the water's surface, the Hubei Daily reported.
A 60-centimetre (two-foot) thick layer of garbage covering an area of
more than 50,000 square metres (12 acres) began to form in front of
the dam when the rainy season started in early July, according to the
Hubei Daily.
China considers the 22-billion-dollar Three Gorges Dam a modern
wonder. Since its completion in 2008, it has pumped out much-needed
hydroelectricity, increased shipping on the Yangtze and helped reduce
flooding.
But critics charge the world's largest dam has caused ecological
damage and increased landslides in the area. About 1.4 million people
were displaced by the dam, whose construction put several heritage
sites deep underwater.
Copyright � 2010 AFP. All rights reserved. More �
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