Yangtze! Yangtze!

(February 17, 2009) An extraordinary collection of interviews, essays, and statements by Chinese scientists, journalists, and intellectuals opposed to the massive Three Gorges dam on China’s Yangtze River. Originally published in 1989 as the democracy movement was gathering momentum, Yangtze! Yangtze! is credited with pressuring the State Council to postpone the dam, and inspired the democracy movement by striking an unprecedented blow at powerful state authorities promoting the dam. This pioneering critique is now available in English, expanded to include post-Tiananmen events.

Patagonia Dams – Horseback Protest in Chile

(February 11, 2009) We had just landed after a 45 minute flight on LAN Chile from Puerto Montt at the Balmaceda airport outside the city of Coyhaique in the Patagonia. We were riding in an airport shuttle to central Coyhaique when we came around a bend to find a police car following a long line of horses. This was the Patagonia sin Represas horseback protest that has been making its way across the Patagonia for several weeks in an attempt to draw national and international attention to the proposed Dams that will be built in Southern Chile.

Behind China’s drought

(February 10, 2009) When the Chinese state media reported last week that China’s wheat-producing provinces have been hit by the worst drought in 50 years, the story immediately went global. But when we checked official Chinese news sites we noticed something odd. Many of the photos and video clips popping up under the “worst drought in 50 years” banner showed soldiers and farmers hosing down wheat fields with water. Lots of water.

Three Gorges Dam Project, Yangtze River, China

(2008) Large reservoirs can cause seismic events as they fill and as the pressure on local faults increases. Such reservoir-induced seismicity was predicted for the Three Gorges region, which is already seismically active and indeed, there has been an increase in reported seismic activity in the region following construction of the dam and the filling of the reservoir.

SNC-Lavalin official arraigned in ‘Lavalingate’ – Indian hydro dam scandal: Export Development Canada provided funding

(February 5, 2009) According to recent Indian press reports, the country’s Central Bureau of Investigation has arraigned Claus Trendl, a senior vice president with Canada’s SNC-Lavalin, for the engineering giant’s role in a contract to overhaul three hydro-electric dams in the southwestern state of Kerala. It is alleged that irregularities occurred in the awarding of the contract and that Lavalin benefited from undue favour.

China Earthquake a Dam-Induced Disaster?

(February 4, 2009) Last year’s devastating Sichuan earthquake, which took at least 69,000 lives, may have been unleashed by the huge Zipingpu Dam. New scientific evidence links the impoundment of the Zipingpu reservoir to the activation of a fault line near the dam site. A thorough scientific assessment is needed before China builds more dams in earthquake-prone areas.