People’s Daily Online
June 7, 2007

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The water quality of Yangtze River has become of increasing concern. Has the Three Gorges Dam Project caused the pollution in Yangtze River? Lu Youmei, an academic of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, as well as the chairman of the Chinese National Committee on Large Dams, answered the question when interviewed by the People’s Daily journalist.

Journalist: There has been much praise for the Three Gorges Project at home and abroad, but some think that the Three Gorges Dam Project has caused environmental pollution and ecological problems. What’s your opinion?

Lu Youmei: A recent report said that the Three Gorges Project posed many new difficulties for the environmental protection of the reservoir area and river training work on the lower-middle reaches of the Yangtze River. A serious outbreak of blue green algae has formed in the tributary, because the Three Gorges reservoir area has not been effectively monitored; however, eutrophication in the mainstream has not occurred. Therefore, we should note that the rapid development of urbanization and industrialization has caused the environmental problems frequently appearing in Yangtze River Valley. There is no scientific foundation to blame the Three Gorges Project for the pollution of the Yangtze River. Some considered that one of harmful aspects of the Three Gorges Project is that building dam would cause many environmental problems. Quite the opposite is true.

Journalist: How do things stand at the moment?

Lu Youmei: We can pump large amounts of funding to improve the environment of the Yangtze River because of the great economic results provided by the Three Gorges Project. Since the second half of 2003, the first eighteen wastewater treatment plants in Three Gorges reservoir area began operation, and total wastewater treatment reached 150,000 tons everyday. So, the Three Gorges Project has been providing an effective guarantee to the development of the Yangtze River. The development of hydropower cannot have a terrible impact on the ecological environment.

Journalist: Nationally-related resources policies have already announced that hydropower is clean energy. However, many people have said that the development of hydropower would damage the ecological environment. Do you agree with them?

Lu Youmei: The use of water resources is not only clean energy, but it also regenerates energy. Hydropower utilizes water’s potential energy to produce electricity. It’s only a physical change, not meant to ruin the environment. International associations and most energy experts have already deemed the water resource as clean and capable of regenerating energy.

Journalist: In the process of hydropower development, there are many effects that will impact living beings in the water and on land.

Lu Youmei: There are only slight impacts, not serious, damaging impacts on the ecological environment. We can take the appropriate measures to resolve these issues, such as building a special channel for living beings in the water, and establishing a habitat for living beings on land. Not long ago, I went to the Dadu River to inspect the status of hydropower development. Due to the pressure of a time limit, only available materials were used to complete the project. Thus, the ecological environment was damaged. We should be paying more attention to this.