(September 11, 2002) ‘The sheer size of the [Three Gorges] dam has fuelled decades of controversy. … Environmentalist and writer Dai Qing has not relaxed her condemnation of the project.’

Supporters and opponents of the controversial Three Gorges project would probably agree on one thing – it is the dam of a millennium. The project is still not fully fleshed out, as construction work continues on the dam’s right bank crest that will house a further twelve 700-megawatt turbine-generators but even so, the scale is daunting. The dam wall is 2.3km long and stands 185 metres high. When fully operational in 2009, the water level of the reservoir will be at 175 metres, rising from 135 metres now.

Much of the project area remains an enormous construction site. From the highest point, ant-like workers from all over the country go about building the right bank powerhouse and a second one-way, one-step lock for 3,000-tonne passenger vessels. The 14 generators in the left bank powerhouse each measure 22 to 25 metres in diameter and are already pumping out electricity daily that is being transmitted as far away as eastern China. A double-lane, five-step lock allows millions of yuan worth of goods to be transported along the Yangtze. Descending to ground level via escalators and elevators, the clinically sterile main control room is manned by a handful of staff who work in shifts round the clock. “Averaged out, one staff member is in charge of about 50 MW of power generated. … We are highly automated,” a supervisor said.

The sheer size of the dam has fuelled decades of controversy. One primary issue is the resettlement of residents whose homes were submerged by the dam. Environmentalist and writer Dai Qing has not relaxed her condemnation of the project. Officially, about 1.13 million people are being resettled to make way for the project and China Yangtze Power says 80 per cent have already been relocated. But Ms Dai believes the true number is much greater. Last month, she said in Beijing that people who had been resettled were each paid 8,500 yuan, against the 30,000 yuan that was promised by the central government. While these opposing voices may persist, the reality is that tonnes of water now gush from the mammoth dam, generating much-needed electricity for a rapidly expanding economy.

South China Morning Post, September 11, 2002