As an important infrastructure project in the mainland, the Three Gorges Dam has not only played an important water conservancy function since its completion, but also become a famous tourist attraction, attracting a large number of tourists to enjoy its magnificent scenery.
However, before construction began in 1994, the much-talked-about project was met with a backlash from leading experts.
The experts, who come from a variety of fields such as geography, ecology and cultural relics, refused to sign the vote, warning that the construction of the Three Gorges Dam would adversely affect the country's future development.
What kind of concerns did arise at that time?
Information source: All the content stated in this article has reliable information sources, all of which are displayed in the text, for reference only, please read sensibly!
Authoritative experts disagree
These experts from different fields have raised serious concerns and concerns about the construction of the Three Gorges Dam, and they have not only read a lot of relevant materials, but also conducted many field visits to the Yangtze River basin.
In the end, it was agreed that if the dam is actually built, it will bring a series of serious consequences to the mainland:
1. Huge immigration problems
The area where the Three Gorges Dam is located will be the largest reservoir inundation, meaning 632 square kilometres of land will be submerged and 1.13 million residents will have to be relocated.
Such a large-scale population migration would be a huge test for the national strength at that time.
2. Destruction of cultural relics and monuments
More than 800 precious places of interest in the submerged area will be demolished, and these historical and cultural heritage sites will be lost forever once they are submerged.
At that time, the protection of cultural relics was already negligent, and the construction of the Three Gorges Project would exacerbate the loss of cultural relics.
3. Destruction of the ecological environment
The construction of the dam will inevitably have a huge impact and change on the original geological environment.
The siltation of rivers, the decline in the utilization of water resources, and the destruction of rare animal habitats can all bring catastrophic blows to local ecosystems.
In addition, experts have questioned the safety and resilience of the Three Gorges Dam, fearing that downstream areas will pay an unbearable price if the dam bursts or is attacked.
Addressing the concerns of the experts
Despite the controversy surrounding the Three Gorges Project, the government has taken a series of countermeasures to address key issues such as resettlement, cultural relics protection, and ecological and environmental protection.
With full advance notification and reasonable compensation, the masses consciously supported and actively cooperated, and the whole relocation process was orderly.
With the belief of "giving up a small family for everyone, and supporting the construction of the Three Gorges for the country", everyone left their homes one after another and went to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other areas to settle down.
Although they can't help but feel a little nostalgic for the old land, they have witnessed the revival of old cities in the process of demolition, and their determination to build the country has doubled.
As the migrants settled in their new settlements, the government provided them with a large number of jobs in a timely manner, which provided them with a strong source of income.
Large-scale infrastructure and industrial projects have been rolled out, which not only solve the employment problem of immigrants, but also inject new vitality into the local economy.
Although the migration army, which spanned two centuries and cost more than 53 billion yuan, caused concern in the outside world, it took 18 years for the government to make it a successful conclusion.
The entire Three Gorges resettlement work has won wide acclaim from all walks of life, fully demonstrating the mainland's outstanding ability and firm determination to solve major challenges.
In terms of cultural relics protection, the government organized tens of thousands of professional archaeologists to carry out large-scale rescue excavations in the submerged area before the start of the big disaster, and unearthed a large number of precious cultural relics.
For those immovable cultural relics that cannot be moved, the government has considered protecting them in the scenic area for future visits during the engineering design stage.
In terms of ecological and environmental protection, the government has vigorously developed the ecological and environmental protection industry, and has established a number of nature reserves in the Three Gorges Reservoir area and surrounding areas to protect rare wild animals and plants and their habitats.
In addition, the Three Gorges Water Conservancy Project has also set up a series of aquatic ecological compensation measures to ensure that the ecological environment of the downstream river is not damaged.
In addition, the government has also comprehensively improved the engineering disaster prevention capacity and safety protection level of the dam from various aspects such as engineering design, construction and operation management, and eliminated the risk of dam failure and dam failure to the greatest extent.
The implementation of this series of measures has to a large extent alleviated and resolved the various concerns raised by the experts at the time.
Although there are still some controversies in the construction of the project, the government's determination and sincerity are clear, that is, to continuously improve the project plan, minimize risks and hidden dangers, and effectively protect the vital interests of the people.
The Three Gorges Dam has huge benefits
Since the Three Gorges Project was fully completed and put into operation, the tremendous benefits of this water conservancy project in the world have become increasingly apparent, and have had a far-reaching impact on the mainland's economic and social development.
First, the Three Gorges Dam has greatly improved the flood control capacity of the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River.
In 2020, the Yangtze River basin was hit by a once-in-a-century catastrophic flood, and the Three Gorges Reservoir carried out several storage adjustments to reduce the disaster and avoid greater losses downstream.
The construction of this major project has fundamentally solved the historical problem of flooding in the main and tributaries of the Yangtze River.
Second, the Three Gorges Dam has the important function of generating electricity.
Up to now, the Three Gorges Power Station has installed 32 7 million kilowatt hydroelectric generating units, with a total installed capacity of 22.3 million kilowatts, accounting for about 1/9 of the country's annual power generation.
It has made a significant contribution to the supply of clean energy in the mainland, supporting industrial and agricultural production and urban and rural residents' daily electricity consumption in the areas along the Belt and Road.
Thirdly, the Three Gorges Project water storage area surrounds hundreds of kilometers and is full of many scenic spots with beautiful natural scenery, and has now developed into a well-known tourist attraction in China.
In 2022 alone, the Three Gorges Scenic Area will receive more than 70 million tourists, with a comprehensive tourism income of nearly 40 billion yuan, becoming an important growth pole driving the regional economy.
With the continuous improvement of the follow-up project and supporting facilities of the Three Gorges, the comprehensive benefits of this water conservancy project will also increase day by day.
It will continue to play a variety of functions such as flood control, power generation, shipping, water supply, and tourism, and make greater contributions to promoting the high-quality development of the Yangtze River Economic Belt.
From protecting the safety of life and property, supporting the supply of energy and electricity, to promoting regional economic prosperity, the Three Gorges Project has become an important landmark project for the mainland's development and progress, and will certainly play an irreplaceable strategic role in the future.
The Three Gorges Project has always had twists and turns
The idea of building the Three Gorges Project has been around for a long time, dating back to the Qing Dynasty.
Historically, there have been many initiatives to plan the excavation of the Three Gorges, but they have all been put on hold for various reasons. It wasn't until the 80s of the last century that this long-cherished wish began to be implemented.
As early as the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, some people suggested to the imperial court to build a project in the Three Gorges area to prevent floods and water.
Li Zhuowu, a post-epigrapher, clearly put forward the idea of damming the Three Gorges and digging shipping in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. However, under the backward conditions of productive forces at that time, such a grand project was difficult to realize.
In the Republic of China period, due to lack of funds and other problems, the Three Gorges Project was still unable to start.
In 1944, the Water Conservancy Commission of the Nationalist Government formally approved the survey and design of the Three Gorges Project, which was to be implemented in phases and sections, but only a small part of the geological survey was completed in the end.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Three Gorges Project was constantly put on the agenda. In 1956, the State Council decided to build the Gezhouba Water Conservancy Project as a preliminary project for the Three Gorges Project.
From 1958 to 1960, during the People's Communization Movement, millions of migrant workers were organized to work on construction sites in the Three Gorges area, but no substantial progress was made due to extensive management.
It was not until the 80s of the 20th century, with the reform and opening up and the enhancement of national strength, that the Three Gorges Project could be put into practice.
In 1992, the Seventh National People's Congress approved the start of construction, marking the beginning of the actual construction stage of the Three Gorges Project. After 13 years of continuous construction, it was fully completed and put into operation in 2012.
It can be seen from this that the construction of the Three Gorges Project was finally completed after hundreds of years of accumulation and countless setbacks after New China won a fundamental victory.
After the Three Gorges Project was completed and put into operation, its comprehensive benefits in flood control, power generation, and shipping became increasingly prominent.
In 2020 alone, the Three Gorges Reservoir mitigated disasters downstream and avoided greater losses. At the same time, the Three Gorges Dam has also become a famous tourist attraction, driving economic prosperity along the route.
It can be said that the Three Gorges Project has not only solved the problems left over from history, but also injected new impetus into economic and social development.