Probe International
August 31, 2007

What: A series of at least six high dams and seven long tunnels taking water from the upper reaches of the Yangtze over hundreds of kilometres through unstable terrain to the upper reaches of Yellow River.

Where: The western route of the south-north water transfer project is designed to divert water from tributaries of the Yangtze, including the Dadu, Yalong and Jinsha rivers, to the Yellow River. It will involve construction in Tibet and the provinces of Sichuan and Qinghai.

Why: According to a US embassy report from Beijing, “The main justification for the Western Route, in fact, is not economic but rather regional political pressures. The Western Route would direct very expensive resources to the amelioration of past development mistakes, by further subsidizing the hard-pressed grain farmers of China’s Middle West.” It may also be part of a larger scheme to exploit the natural resources of the west in general and Tibet in particular. Chinese officials recently commented that Tibet’s minerals “could become a cornerstone of China’s economy.” See here for insightful discussion.

Who: The project is under the Ministry of Water Resources.

When: Investigations got underway in 2001. Construction expected to begin in 2010. But “the Western Route is unlikely to ever be built.” (US embassy, 2003)

How Much? Estimated cost is US$37 billion – already more than twice the cost of the Three Gorges dam – but Guo Yushan, a former vice-director of the Three Gorges Project construction committee, warns it’s likely to rise to as much as US$75 billion.

Amount of water diverted from the Yangtze to the Yellow River:
17 billion cubic metres of water per year. That’s about half the amount of water held in the Three Gorges dam’s 600-kilometre long reservoir, and equivalent to five years of water supply for Beijing.

At what ecological cost? In-depth ecological assessment can be found here for a fee.