(May 25, 2011) Contradicting official claims that the Three Gorges reservoir plays no part in exacerbating the drought  in the Yangtze River basin, Ma Jun of the Beijing-based Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, a non-government organization, told Reuters: “Without the Three Gorges Dam, the water level in the Yangtze would not be that low.” Faced with the downstream drought crisis, Three Gorges officials have been ordered to release water, thus hampering their ability to generate power. Added Ma: “Fundamentally there is a conflict between hydropower generation and water supply, irrigation, and navigation.”  Read the Reuters’ article here.

To track the Three Gorges reservoir levels and read about how they affect the region, click here.