Chinese governmental project of Three Gorges Dam is considered to be a serious threat to the environment; a number of policies and warnings have been carried out by scientists aimed at protection and prevention of atmospheric pollution. It is necessary to underline the fact that the Three Gorges Dam is a true environmental nightmare leading to considerable water pollution; the Chinese government has been ignoring all the scientific warnings taking no clean-up measures and water quality operations.
According to the words of Liu Qifeng, the representative of State Environmental Protection Administration, ‘…the pollution could become worse and normal operation of the hydropower station will be affected (Chan, p. 134). The biggest dam in the world is constructed in the Yangtze River is a true threat to water quality. The project was perceived as a disastrous failure damaging the consequences of the environment; it was found out that millions of tons of industrial waste and garbage affect water operations in Three Gorges Dam.
The sharpening of water pollution problem connected with the dam impact, a row of measures was developed to tackle the problem. First of all, China’s cabinet managed to approve a new ten-year plan being focused on the control of water pollution in the area of the dam and Yangtze upper reaches. About $5 billion was invested for the purpose of building garbage and water treatment facilities, pollution factories control facilities and environmental improvement. In accordance with the developed plan, about 160 treatment plants and 146 centers of wastewater disposal will be constructed. Besides, in case fertilizer plants, mines and paper mills do not meet the standards of pollutant mission, they will be immediately closed. All the measures of water pollution prevention are the natural explanation of Three Gorges Dam threat to the environment (Pasternack, 2007).
It is necessary to underline the fact that severe water pollution resulting from dam functioning can be explained by chaotic industrial expansion throughout decades (A Trip to Xiangjiaba, p. 29). Though there is a strong controversial factor as to the reason for declaring the Chinese project as the basic threat to water protection. Some of the sources state, that the principal motives are based on political campaign and presidency criticism. The Three Gorges Dam was considered to be the aimed at attracting new investors and political superiors’ impressing. Nevertheless, despite all concerns the project remains to be the disastrous for Chinese water storage. Thus, more than 760 000 people living in Chine annually die because of severe water pollution levels; the problem is still open and needs thorough policies and measures to be taken for its solution (Hvistendahl, p.13).
The Three Gorges Dum project created by Chinese government appeared to be the central problem in water, soil, and air pollution prevention producing influence on social and cultural factors of the country. It is necessary to underline the fact that millions of people in China have no access to clean water, which leads to health threats and even lethal consequences. The development of thorough measures and making considerable investments are the basic steps to be done on the governmental way of environmental catastrophe prevention. Political and economical motives are to be substituted by the necessity to solve the problems of the environment. The threat to water storage in China through the biggest dam in the world should be centralized by current government.
References
- A Trip to Xiangjiaba. International Water Power and Dam Construction. Progressive Media Markets. 2009.
- Chan, J. Chinese Government Acknowledges Three Gorges Dam ‘Disaster’. International Committee of the Fourth International. 2007.
- Hvistendahl, M. China’s Three Gorges Dam: An Environmental Catastrophe? Pravda, 2007.
- Millions forced out by China dam. BBC News. 2007. Web.
- Pasternack, A. Three Gorges: China’s Own Dam Problem. Business and Politics. New York, 2007.