Officials from China’s Three Gorges Corporation visit troubled U.S. lock

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(June 19, 2013) Officials from China’s Three Gorges Corporation and Project Construction Committee (TGPCC) paid a visit earlier this month to the troubled U.S. Chickamauga Lock in Tennessee as part of an information sharing exchange organized by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) — responsible for the operation and maintenance of navigation locks on the Tennessee River. TGPCC, established by China’s State Council to oversee construction of the massive Three Gorges Dam project, has concerns regarding its own ship locks: some 733 cracks were reported to have appeared in the east and westbound channels of the Three Gorges dam’s five-step shiplock, along with a worrisome distortion that may have been caused by crustal plate movement, among other issues. The dam’s ambitious and intensely complex ship lift, slated for completion in 2015, has yet to be tested.

China detains journalist who documented labour camp abuses, Tiananmen crackdown accounts

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(June 12, 2013) Beijing-based photojournalist Du Bin has been detained by Chinese state security officials after he disappeared following the release of his documentary on Chinese labour camp abuses — profiled here by Probe International last month. His sister, high-profile human rights activist Hu Jia, says Du is being held because his work directly challenges the authorities: “They are suppressing him to send a message to others,” she says. Gillian Wong reports for the Associated Press.

Uprooted

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(June 14, 2013) Yang Yi’s surreal photo memoir of his childhood home, flooded for the construction of China’s Three Gorges Dam project, received special mention as one of New York’s Best Weekend Art Events in May when it debuted at Galerie Richard. Its run ends tomorrow, June 15.

NY regulators approve Fortis takeover of CH Energy, with advice to “understand our rules and regulations”

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(June 13, 2013) The New York state Public Service Commission unanimously approved the $1.5 billion bid by Canadian-based Fortis Inc. to take over Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp.’s parent company, CH Energy Group despite “fierce public hostility.” Commission Chairman Garry Brown warned Fortis to avoid looking at the local utility as a profit-generating holding. “Get to know New York,” he advised Fortis. “The way you may do things, business, elsewhere is not New York,” in a probable reference to Fortis’s controversial record of dam-building in Belize.

Fortis proposed buyout of NY utility jeopardized by corporate reputation

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(June 12, 2013) As Canadian electric utility holding company Fortis Inc. awaits a decision on its proposed $1.5-billion buyout of New York’s CH Energy Group, a coalition of groups opposed to the takeover see Fortis’ past performance in Belize and British Columbia as a warning of what may lie in store for them. Probe International provides a round-up of reports on the controversy.

Small dams an even bigger dam problem, say researchers

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(June 1, 2013) New research from Oregon State University reveals small dams are no easier on the environment than their larger counterparts and often present more of a threat to their surroundings. The comparison between 31 small dams built on tributaries to China’s Nu River and four large dams proposed for the main stem of the same river, found the effects of the smaller dams were worse for nine out of the 14 characteristics studied. Habitat loss and damage at several dam sites show that the environmental effects of small dams are often greater, sometimes by several orders of magnitude. “A lack of regulation paired with a dearth of communication between small dam projects in China allows for the effects to multiply and accumulate through several dam sites,” say researchers.

Flow test for water project gets underway

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(May 31, 2013) The process of diverting water from the Yangtze River through the eastern route of China’s massive South-to-North Water Diversion Project began this week after 11 years since construction began. Although the water diversion intended for drought-prone cities in China’s arid northern regions “will enrich the water supply in the north, its impact on the ecosystem is irreversible,” said Ma Jun, an environmentalist.

A decade on, controversy still surrounds China’s Three Gorges Dam

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(May 31, 2013) Agence France-Presse reports that despite problems, China’s Three Gorges dam will be joined by a wave of new hydropower projects over the next decade — mostly spread across the country’s mountainous and earthquake prone southwest. The ambitious plans have left some in China’s growing environmental movement feeling powerless. Probe International Fellow, activist and journalist Dai Qing, who spent time in prison for her opposition to the Three Gorges dam, says the country’s environmentalists “continue to oppose the hydropower plans” but “they will be built no matter what local people say.”

China’s new dawn

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(May 24, 2013) The new dawn of Chinese activism: organic, leaderless and technology-driven. This report by journalist Monica Tan looks at the rise of public protest in China, how activism has moved away from a select high-profile few to become a growing movement made up of ordinary people – ‘lao baixing’ – determined to stand up for their environment. Technology enables large masses of people to get the word out and to assemble at low risk: no one and everyone leads. Some see this grassroots’ movement as the road to democracy and accountability for China.