Hydropower from Three Gorges Dam in China - Coursework Example

Hydro-power from Three Gorges Dam in China Assessment of environmental sustainability December 4, Three GorgesDam in China was built with the good aim of generating hydro-power to serve the then increasing energy needs of the country. Generally, the dam was to create an alternative clean source of energy to relieve the countrys heavy reliance on coal energy. Second was to help control floods along Yangtze River. Much as the project has managed to meet these objectives, it is import to perform a sustainability study so as to establish the actual impact that it has had socially, economically and environmentally. This paper gives a critical account of the environmental sustainability of the Three Gorges Dam in China acknowledging the positive impact the dam has had and suggesting improvements and solutions to address its limitations. While the concept of sustainability encompasses social, economic and environmental aspects, this paper has majored on the environmental impact while giving scanty attention to the remaining two. Because of this limited scope, only a number of sustainability issues have been addressed. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Methodology 4 Scope 4 Problem statement 5 Objectives 5 Data and Analysis 5 Current state of Three Gorges Dam in China 5 Sustainable impact of Three Gorges Dam 6 Negative impact of Three Gorges Dam 6 Future trends 8 Conclusion 8 Recommendations 8 Works Cited 10 Methodology Due to the limited time frame allowed for this project together with the costly nature of carrying out primary research, secondary research has been employed. Data from already conducted researches will be used and data analysis performed based on this secondary data and through reviewing analyses conducted by other bodies available online. Scope Sustainability is a field that requires that development policies aimed at meeting present needs be conducted in a way that they do not hinder the future generations from meeting their needs. It is a multifaceted area that attempts to maintain constant availability of resources by influencing patterns of use of these resources. Futurity, environment, public participation and equity are principles suggested as measures of sustainability (Mitchel et al as cited in Ho-ying, 9). Futurity demands that the value of resources passed to the future should not decline and proposes proper utilization of renewable resources, sparing exploitation of the non-renewable resources and proper disposal of wastes. Equity on the other hand requires that disadvantaged members of society should have equal opportunity to use resources like the rest of the population. The environment principle seeks to establish the understanding that people are entirely dependent on natural resources and requires that development activities should not deplete nature in a way that it stops supporting life effectively (Ho-ying, 9). This paper relies on the environmental impact of the dam to evaluate the sustainability of the whole project. Evidently, from the above definition of sustainability principles, environment strikes out as the most critical because all the other three are tied to it either directly or indirectly. The scope of this paper has therefore been defined based on the assumption that by evaluating the environment impact of the Three Gorges Dam, most of the sustainability issues will have been covered. It assumes that the major impact the dam has had is to the environment and that social and economic effects arise as a result of impact to natural ecosystem. In this regard, the findings and recommendations of this paper are limited to environment while giving scanty attention to the socioeconomic issues. However, other literature exist that address the issue of sustainability in a broader scope than covered herein. Problem statement How the environmental impact of the Three Gorges Dam can be used to measure the sustainability of the Three Gorges Hydro-power dam in China. Objectives To analyze the current state of Three Gorges Dam in China. To determine the positive and negative effects of Three Gorges Dam project to the environment. To suggest solutions to some of the environment sustainability limitations of Three Gorges Dam. Data and Analysis Current state of Three Gorges Dam in China Three Gorges Dam is a hydro-power project built on Yangtze River forming the worlds largest hydroelectric dam. It is 181 meters high, 2335 meters long and extends 600 kilometers upstream. The dam has an installed of capacity of 22, 500 MW (megawatts) compared to 14,000 MW generated by Itaipu hydroelectric dam in Brazil and Paraguay (United States Geological Survey). The project was flagged off in 1994 and construction was completed in 2006. First generation began in 2003 and since then more generators went online until 2012 when the last of its 32 generators was installed bringing the dam under full operation (BBC). Currently, the approximately $40bn project supplies 11% of Chinas total power. Recent studies indicate that since the dam reached full water level, geological disasters have increased with the government itself acknowledging that the dam has adverse effects to the environment. Subsequently, this paper will delve into establishing some of these effects but first is an appreciation of the positive impact of the dam. Sustainable impact of Three Gorges Dam Albeit the heated criticism from environmental activists over the adverse social, economic and environmental effects, the dam does meet most of the objectives it was designed to deliver. First, Three Gorges dam was designed to control floods on Yangtze River which have plagued occupants of Jingjiang are for dozens of years. By preventing floods, 1.5 million hectares of land and 15 million people at Jianghan Plain and Dongting Lake area will be protected (China Three Gorges Corporation). As a consequence, epidemics, mass destruction of property, injuries and the burden of flood diversion are averted and people get a chance to access quality life. Through this the futurity and environment principles are met making the energy project sustainable in this regard. Second, the dam was intended to generate power to meet the needs of the rapidly growing Chinese economy. In addition there was need to relieve the over reliance on coal as the main source of energy. Compared to coal powered plants generating equivalent energy, Three Gorges dam has little contribution to greenhouse gases. The China Three Gorges Corporation document that by using hydroelectric power, Three Gorges Power Plant will help reduce “emission of 100 million tons of CO2, 2 million tons of SO2, 0.37 million tons of nitrogen oxide and a lot of waste water and solid waste.” Close to this is the expectation that the dam will improve the weather around by creating a micro-climate suitable for agriculture. On the economic front, the dam is to facilitate ship navigation where goods transportation from Chonquing to Shanghai will be possible. Given that it is the largest hydro-power project in the world, China hopes to net revenue courtesy of tourists (MountHolyoke). Negative impact of Three Gorges Dam First, the dam sits along a fault line that is characterized by earthquakes that have raked villages around in the past. The great weight of dam, claim scientists, is enough to trigger seismic activity and even point that seismic activity has increase courtesy of the dam (International Rvivers). According to International Rivers, the heavy industrial activity upstream and erosion have seen increased silt and waste disposal in the reservoir a factor that negatively impacts on survival of fish. In addition, it observes that fish population will continually decline as because those downstream cannot cross upstream across the dam to spawn. The dam retains billions of tons of water behind it and critics claim the recent droughts in the populous Northern China are attributed to the dam. Lubin and Schafer highlight that though the Northern part has half of Chinas population, the region only has 15% fresh water. The dam clearly affects the cleanliness of water by introduction of silt. An account by Alison Singer reveals that during the process of draw-down, which aims to reduce sedimentation, a significant amount of methane which is more potent than CO2 is released to the atmosphere. This process also results into sediment suspension in water lowering its usability to humans and sea life. Landslides have also been found to happen often in the Three Gorges regions with walls of the gorges yielding to erosion and as a result the aesthetic quality has been lost. To pave way for its construction, huge tracts of land had to be submerged. Covering a surface area of 400 square miles, this dam has submerged a considerable part of the natural environment causing disruption to flora and fauna existence. Singer further indicates that the construction consumed a lot of cement which had to be produced to meet this need. As a result, there was heavy industrial activity to produce cement which contributed greatly to environmental pollution through gases and waste disposal. While focusing on the environmental impact, it was also important to examine though superficially, the social impact of the Three Gorges Dam. Being the largest dam in the world, it also displaced a record number of people in the region. To accommodate the humongous reservoir, a record of over 1.2 million people were displaced and 30 cities, 140 towns and 1350 villages were submerged (Internal Rivers). In the process issues with relocation have been in the media for a long time as the victims were not sufficiently restored. Rich culture has also been submerged and cannot be reclaimed. Future trends The government environmental policies, though brilliant, have not been effectively implemented. Furthermore, there have reluctance to address environmental concerns raised by the dam and this means that the future promises a number of severe ecological repercussions. Economically, the dam will definitely improve the energy condition relieving some regions like Guadong from occasional rationing (Ho-ying, 60). The dam will in the long run create a micro-climate that would affect farming patterns with some crops being dropped due to unfavorable weather conditions. Humidity is bound to increase in the region and as a consequence, navigation on land and visibility in air will be adversely affected. Increased humidity also bring about acid rains due to the concentration of different gases in the lower atmosphere. Conclusion Gupta (as cited in Ho-ying, 23) posits that a sustainable dam should meet a number of requirements. Dam projects should be environmentally friendly, socially acceptable and economically justifiable. Furthermore, he explains that they should improve the quality of human while maintaining the vitality of the environment and render water availability in enough quantity and quality at affordable prices. However, following the exposed ecologically damaging effects discussed above, the Three Gorges Dam pose fails to meet both Guptas prudent criteria and Mitchels principles of sustainability. Though it offers a number of sustainable effects, its negative consequences far outweigh them rendering the whole project unsustainable. To address some of the challenges the dam poses to the environment, few key recommendations have been suggested. Recommendations To alleviate the environmental impact posed by the Three Gorges Dam, the government needs to consider alternative sources of power to reduce utilization of this dam otherwise the effects will intensify and in the long run render the project uneconomical. By exploiting the waters of insha Jiang and Yalong Jiang (two distributaries of Yiangtze river), instead of Yiangtze itself,the devastating ecological impact would be reduced significantly. Alternative energy sources like nuclear which has relatively lower environmental impact should be embraced. To achieve environmental sustainability within the already functioning dam, the following specific measures have to be undertaken: Formulate environmental conservation measures that would ensure forest cover and soil are conserved. The project should also set aside a part of its earnings for environment conservation purposes like tree planting, controlling siltation among others. Enhance on protection of endangered species of animals and plants. Establish effective settlement planning so that future resettlement does not negatively impact on people. Continuous research should be done to establish the ecological effects of the project to facilitate appropriate formulation of mitigation steps. Works Cited “Chinas Three Gorges Dam Reaches Its Operation Peak”. BBC news. BBC, 5 July 2012. Web. 4 Dec. 2014 Ho-ying, Chan. “Assess the Environmental and Social Sustainability of Three Gorges Dam Project”. University of Hong Kong. n.p, 2004. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. Lubin, Gus and Schafer Isabelle. “Earthshaking Facts about Three Gorges Dam”. Business Insider. n.p, 7 July 2010. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. Singer, Alison. “Chinas Dam Environmental Problem”. Is sustainability Still Possible? World watch, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. Three Gorges Dam. International Rivers, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. “Three Gorges Dam: Worlds Largest Hydroelectric Project ”. US Geological survey. USA.gov, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. “Three Gorges Dam Project: Environmental Impacts”. MountHolyoke. n.p, n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. Three Gorges project. China Three Gorges Corporation, 2002. Web. 4 Dec. 2014. Read More