What are the advantages and disadvantages of the three gorges dam

Advantages:

Flood Control

Controlling flood is one of the most significant functions of the Three Gorges Dam, and flooding used to be a major problem for the seasonal Yangtze River. With millions of people living downstream of the dam and many large and important cities like Wuhan, Nanjing and Shanghai situated adjacent to Yangtze River, flooding control has been one of the most issues for China.

Power Generation

As the world’s largest power station of 22,500 MW, Three Gorges Dam project has installed 32 main turbines with two smaller generators to power the plant itself. From 2003 to 2014, the annual power generating is increasing and there was 83.7 terawatthours (TWh) in 2013 and 98.8 TWh in 2014. This electric generating capacity has largely supported the whole nation’s electricity usage.

Cruise Ships Navigation

The installment of ship locks and equipped with a ship lift on Dam, the Yangtze Three Gorges cruise ships heading towards much safer.

Disadvantages:

Water Pollution

Along with the river flowing, there is a large number of land experiencing erosion, which leads to tons of sands and pebbles into the Yangtze River and stay at the upstream and makes great water pollution about Yangtze River.

Migration Problem

Chinese officials estimate that the reservoir will partially or completely inundate 2 cities, 11 counties, 140 towns, 326 townships, and 1351 villages. About 23800 hectares, more than 1.1 million people will have to be resettled.

Environmental Problem

In order to build the dam, the surrounding landscape has been changed largely, which has caused some problems related to climate deteriorated, plants and wildlife disappeared, historical relics submerged, etc.

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