Liujiaxia Hydro Power Plant Disturbs Kanbula National Forest - Term Paper Example

The construction of the Liujiaxia Hydro Power Plant near the Northwest of Jianca County had caused many environmental hazards for the Kanbula Forest. Constructed to generate power supply, control flood and aid in irrigation, this plant had affected its environment so much that it has become doubtful if the benefits gained from this plant are worth the damages it has caused to the ecosystem of the Kanbula Forest. Ever since the creation of the Liujiaxia Plant, the eco system of the Kanbula Forest had gone through many changes. It has caused the vulnerability and extinction of some species of plants and animals. Also, the development of the town has caused intrusion by humans into the habitat of wildlife which has further damaged the natural life of the forest. This paper would explain in detail, the dynamics of the Kanbula Forest, the Liujiaxia Hydro Power Plant, and then move on to discuss the impact of the construction of the plant to the Kanbula Forest in detail. The paper ends with suggestions for the government and concerned authorities to realize the damages caused and take steps to restore the natural environment of the Kanbula Forest. KANBULA FOREST Geographical Position Kanbula Forest is located in Northwest of Jianca County of Huangnan Tibetan Autonomous States in Qinghai Province. It has a total area of 15054.4 hectares, and altitudes of 2100 to 4000 meters above sea level (China Ecotourism 2009). Because of its location at high altitude, Kanbula Forest falls in the category of subalpine forest. The forest is also located in the transition zone from Loess Plateau to Qinghai Tibet Plateau. Thus, it is the warmest region in Qinghai Province. It borders on the Yellow River in the North and shares a boundary with the famous Liajiaxia Hydroelectric Power Station. Huge mountains extend from the forest with trees covered resembling a sea of forest. There are deflated hills around the Kanbula Forest that are formed due to erosion from wind and sand. These hills are known as red cloud landforms (China Ecotourism 2009). Climate Characteristics Situated in the middle of the mountains, the weather of the forest changes frequently. Instead of experiencing all four seasons, the forest only goes through hot and cold seasons in a year. In the warmer weather, warm and humid air blows, whereas the colder season experiences a cold and windy weather. The forest’s tough topographical features form a role of microclimate. According to meteorological data records, the average temperature of the forest is 1 to 2.9 °C with the warmest weather experienced in the month of July, receiving average daily temperatures of about 11.5 to 13.4°C. The coldest month (January) has an average daily temperature of around -12 to -10.1°C.  Between the months from March to September, the average temperature is around 7-8.4 °C and is stable over time through 0°C for 190 days. The plant growing period includes a diurnal temperature of 13.l °C, around 2622-2900 hours of annual sunshine, global solar radiation of 609-647 kJ / cm. The region experiences an annual rainfall of about 450-490 mm, and an annual evaporation of 1923 mm. Moreover, the annual average wind speed is around 19 meters per second. Soil Characteristics Kanbula forest’s soil has five different categories (Qinghai Forest Survey Records): First is the alpine shrub meadow soil that is found at the altitude between 3600 and 3900 meters. Second is the upland meadow shrub soil that is found at an altitude between 3200 and 3700 meters. Third is the grey cinnamon soil that is found at 2600 and 3400 meters elevation. Fourth type is the chestnut soil that is found at an altitude of 2600 and 2800 meters. Fifth is the grey desert soil that is found at an elevation below 2400 meters. Forest Plant and Animal Resources Huge mountains extend everywhere from the Kanbula Forest and the forest coverage rate is 28%. Dominant species of trees in the forest are Qinghai spruce, mountain Yang, birch, pine and spruce evergreen. These trees are tolerant to cold and poor condition and are rooted in the cliff walls. Due to poor conditions, these plants grow tall and straight. The main flowers and species that grow here are species of Azalea, Glabra, Potentilla fructicosa, Honeysuckle, Caragana, Rose, Berberis, Daisy and Buckthorns. The total forest area is about 15, 054.4 hectares, including 9949.3 hectares of woodland area, 5105.1 hectares of non-woodland area, 1934.1 hectares of shrub land, and 141 hectares of immature woodland. The common tree species of the forest mostly stand in the young and middle age stage, thus they have strong growth potential. Forest total standing stock is 532,669.2 cubic meters of which forest stock volume is 530,945.2. The amount of zonal distribution of vegetation is not significant but most significant vertical belts are the ones at 2780-3500 meters above sea level with distribution of birch, pine, spruce and other trees. And at 3500-4000 meters above the sea level with the distribution of Potentilla fruiticosa, thyme, Caragana and other trees and shrubs. At an altitude of 4000-4500 meters the main shrubs are gentian, Stipa and blue-green.  In addition to the diverse species of trees present in the Kanbula forest, the region also serves as a natural habitat for many animals, such as deer, argali, Shiyang, Braun, Ma chicken, Musk, and cuckoo. LIUJIAXIA HYDRO POWER PLANT The Liujiaxia dam is located on the upper Yellow River. The reservoir is the largest body of water within Gansu. The main purpose of the dam is to generate hydroelectric power, but it is also used for flood control and irrigation (International Association of Engineering Geology). The hydro power plant of the dam has five generators with total installed capacity of 1,225MW (International Association of Engineering Geology). When it became operational it was the country’s biggest power plant, and it remained so until the 1980s (Jun Jing pp25-27).  In 1955 just after creation of China, the government announced a large-scale program of construction of hydroelectric power plant on Yellow River (Jun Jing pp25-27). It was the first hydro power plant that introduced the concept of bidding and tendering in China. According to the plan, one dam was built in each of the Three Gorges of the Yellow River; Liujia Gorge, Yanguo Gorge and Bapan Gorge (International Association of Engineering Geology). In 1958, the construction on first three dams was started and the Liujiaxia Dam was completed in 1969 (Jun Jing pp25-27). The generators were brought into use between 1969 and 1974 (Liujiaxia Hydroelectric Power Plant).  Environmental Hazards Caused by Hydroelectric Power Plant The water reservoirs created by the three dams displaced a large number of local farmers. The three dams flooded 7781 hectares of farmland and displaced 43,829 local residents (Jun Jing pp 25-27). The compensation payment to the displaced farmers averaged 365 Yuan per person and was very inadequate. 365 Yuan is equal to around US$53.4. Considering that the minimum wage in China is around 450 Yuan, the farmers should have been paid atleast 5 to 6 months of wage so that they could get the basic necessities until they settled and adjusted into another regison.  When people are displaced, they need to relocate from places that are allotted for dam construction. According to estimation in February 2008, 40-80 million people have lost their homes because of dam construction (Briefing on World Commission on Dams).  Large reservoirs of water that is required for construction of hydroelectric power plants resulted in destruction of large areas of land that was very productive and biologically rich in nutrients. The situation exacerbates by the fact that large water dams cause fragmentation of the habitat of the surrounding areas. Hydroelectric Power Plants can also be destructive to aquatic ecosystem. The dams along Pacific and Atlantic course have reduced the fish population especially that of Salmon by preventing the fish from reaching breeding grounds upstream. A hydroelectric power plant also affects the downstream river environment. Water coming out of the turbine usually contains very little suspended sediment, this leads to river scouring and loss of riverbanks and riverbeds (Sedimentation Problems with Dams). Since turbine gates are cyclically opened, changes in river flow are observed. Water coming out of the turbines is usually warmer than water behind the dam and thus the aquatic faunal life is affected.  Hydroelectric power plants in tropical regions produce huge amount of methane and carbon dioxide gas. This is because plant materials in flooded areas decay due to anaerobic conditions and form methane gas, which is a harmful green house gas. According to the World Commission Dam Report (WCD Final Report), where the reservoir is large compared to the generating capacity (less than 100 watts per square meter of surface area) and no clearing of the forests in the area was undertaken prior to impoundment of the reservoir, greenhouse gas emissions from the reservoir may be higher than those of a conventional oil-fired thermal generation plant (Hydroelectric Power’s Dirty Secret Revealed).  Liujiaxia Hydro Power Plant Disturbs Kanbula Forest Ever since the Liujiaxia Hydro Power Plant was established, there have been several changes in the ecosystem of the Kanbula Forest. Some of the plant and animal species of the forest are becoming vulnerable and extinct. The deep ground excavation and filling, construction of dams; water reservoirs, spoil pipes and roads have shifted the woodland areas. This relatively has created some negative impacts on the ecosystem of the Kanbula Forest. Parts of vegetation of the forest near the hydropower plant have been lost and the total forest coverage area has reduced. In addition, losses to the forest’s ecosystem have been immense. For instance, commuter construction causes an immense degree of soil erosion, which results in loss of benefits of forest protection. Water reservoirs are also harmful for the ecosystem because, construction of water reservoirs allows evaporation of water through open reservoirs and thus reduce the ability of the soil to hold water. In addition, water reservoirs that are constructed as artificial lakes attract tourists and thus the human activity near the hydropower plant increases and disturb the ecosystem of the forest.  Analyzing the Impacts on Growth Status of Plants in Kanbula Forest  Although waterpower is a clean power, which produces no green house gases and no radioactive gases or other harmful and toxic wastes the creation of large water reservoirs has some harmful effects. According to the records of Qinghai forestry department, construction of large dams and water reservoirs not only flood large areas of land that could have had other use, but the Liujiaxia dam also traps sediments from Yellow River that replenishes the sediment on the side of the beach. This has resulted in loss of 3.185hm Square of forest vegetation and scouring of riverbeds due to loss of sedimentation has influenced the growing environment of the plants.  The huge water reservoirs constructed near the Kanbula forest have altered the transformation and distribution of heat and this is the key feature that has caused regional microclimate circumstances called the “lake effective”. The ‘lake effect’ alters the regional precipitation of the forest and it causes an annual temperature increase of 0.1°C to 0.2°C. However, these affects do not change the climate of the whole of the forest.  Plant species in the Kanbula Forest have changed and they have been forced to adapt to the current environmental status. Thus, the forest has suffered the loss of some rare vegetation. Other plant species have become nutrient deficient that have made them ecologically and economically less valuable. For instance, wolfberry a plant of cotoneaster specie found in Kanbula forest has great economic and ecological value for development. Wolfberry is strongly resistant to changes in light and temperature and its soil requirements are less stringent. From the main distribution area the general annual temperature that wolfberry needs to grow is 5.6°C -12.6°C. Wolfberry plant has a developed root system and has two growing seasons and two flowering seasons. Starting from late April to late June is its growing period and the following September is its flowering and fruiting period. Wolfberry relies very little on soil and thus it can grow in domination of chestnut soil that has very little water holding capacity and very little aeration. The Liujiaxia hydropower plant is constructed on the altitude base that is dominated with chestnut soil. In addition, the loss of replenishment of the beach because of loss of sedimentation has resulted in loss of originative plants like wolfberry and these plants have been replaced by small size, low tolerant epiphytes. Since water reservoirs have accelerate the evaporation of water compared to pre condition, wolfberry, which is a tolerant plant is forced to adapt to new condition and its growth is stunted and its ability to hold water in the soil strengthens.  The Affects on Habitats Environment Liujiaxia Hydro power Plant has affected the suitable habitat and environmental conditions of wildlife living in Kanbula Forest. The habitat areas of the wildlife have reduced. The ecological environment of the habitat has changed. As mentioned earlier, construction of water reservoirs and dams flood large tracts of land that could have been used for other activities like vegetation and woodland area. The dams obstruct the migration of fish and causes ecological disturbances. Large area of forest is used to store water to generate clean energy. However, the formation of ‘lake effective’ attracts birds and lead to development of new species as they find a suitable habitat in the changed environment Effects of Increased Human Activity Although during the construction of Liujiaxia Hydropower Plant Station, the concerned departments have tried to control damage to local resources, human activity is a major source of destruction and it is hard to control human activity. Noises that are created during construction of dams, cause great disturbance to the wildlife as noises confuse the wildlife activity and disturb their existent habitat. Due to noises, animal species had to leave their habitat due to which the whole food web of the forest changed, which cause serious ecosystem turbulence. This also caused some of the fragile species of the forest to become rare or extinct. For example, blue sheep animal species of the Kanbula forest faced huge problems due to the construction of the hydropower plant. It is a very rare species of the forest and it lives at a certain altitude and topography of the forest According to Qinghai Forestry Department, to monitor wildlife population, to conserve and manage harvest specie, and to understand population changes since the construction of Liujiaxia Hydropower Plant, distance-sampling methods has been adopted. Distance sampling method has also been adopted to estimate seasonal density of blue sheep in certain areas of Kanbula Forest region from 2002 to 2005. In all, mean group size ranged from 2.12 to 7.65 individuals during the season. Density estimates varied between 3420 sheep per square kilometers in spring 2002 and 2170 square kilometer in late spring 2004 (Kanbula forest monitor and control status report). Analysis and survey of this data shows, blue sheep population has trended down ever since the construction of hydropower plant was constructed next to the Kanbula forest. The population of blue sheep is becoming even less because of human activities. Moreover, the construction of Liujiaxia Hydropower Plant has also increased the tourism in the area and created jobs. This has led to the development of towns, and thus, increased human activity. Dam construction and town construction use huge areas of land of the forest, where previously blue sheep used to be active throughout the day and used to feed and rest on the grassy mountain slopes. Disturbances caused by human activities in the natural habitat of the blue sheep, forced the blue sheep to move up to other mountainous areas, to avoid human interference in their lives. Disorder in the Food Web The consequence of construction of Liujiaxia Hydropower Plant has created a disorder in the food web of Kanbula Hydropower Plant, which has resulted in loss of predators and have caused ecological disturbance on other species. In addition, displacement of blue sheep population on upper mountainous areas has resulted in over grazing of the upper mountain epiphyte vegetation. Thus, the major impact of construction of Liujiaxia Hydropower Plant has been on the biodiversity and reservoir zone environment of the Kanbula Forest. Part of the dam has destroyed the natural habitat of fauna of the forest and has caused the terrestrial and land plants to live in extremely stringent condition. CONCLUSION As discussed, the estalblishment of the Lijiaxia hydro power plant has disturbed the natural environment of the Kanbula forest by a great deal. It is also to note that the local authorities did not play their role in curbing the effects of the hydro power plant. Authorities such as the Qinghai forestry department, Huangnan Tibetan autonomous state forestry department, and the state tourism department, should have kept a close check on the changes that the hydro power plant was causing to the Kanbula forest park. Unfortunately, the authorities did not monitor or record the changes that were going through since the construction of the plant. Even though, it is the responsibility of the government and concerned authorities to protect and preserve these forest parks, this was not the case with the Kanbula forest. The government used the region for the construction of the hydro power plant, without having any concern for the people settled there, the natural environment, the ecological system, or the wildlife. The government must understand that the loss incurred in exchange for additional tourism is far greater than the economical gains. Promoting tourism is important. However, the government should ensure that this is done with proper consideration of the environment. They should realize their mistake, and take corrective measures as soon as possible to curb the effects of the hydro plant. In addition to that, afforestation should be implemented to try and bring back the beautiful Kanbula Forest, as it was. REFERENCES 1. China Ecotourism 2009.www.at0086.com/Kanbula  2. International Association of Engineering Geology. Proceedings, Fifth International 3. Congress, International Association of Engineering Geology, International Association of Engineering Geology. 1986  4. Jun Jing . The Temple of Memories: History, Power, and Morality in a Chinese Village Stanford University Press. 1998 pp. 25-27.ISBN 0804727570 http://books.google.com.au/books?id=3leAld7M7p0C   5. Sedimentation Problems with Dams. http://internationalrivers.org/en/node/1476  6. Briefing on World Commission on Damshttp://internationalrivers.org/en/way-forward/world-commission-dams/world-commission-dams-framework-brief-introduction  7. WCD Findal Report, Retrieved 7/10/2009 http://www.dams.org/report/  8. Hydroelectric power's dirty secret revealed http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7046 Read More