(May 2, 2002) The many problems that have surfaced with the costly Three Gorges dam must cast doubt on the even more expensive south-north water transfer project, the Hong Kong Sun newspaper (Taiyang bao) has said.

(March 13, 2002) Acclaimed environmental journalist Dai Qing looks back at some key moments in the political history of the Three Gorges dam – and sees a glimmer of hope ahead.

(March 6, 2002) A major landslide threatens to submerge a new town built to house people who have been moved to make way for the dam, the Chongqing Morning Post reports.

(February 21, 2002) Two senior Chinese water engineers have urged the central government to undertake a geological-safety inspection of new settlements being built in the Three Gorges area before the dam reservoir is filled next year.

(February 7, 2002) China will inject 4 billion yuan (US$483.1 million) in the next two years to keep its Three Gorges Reservoir area free of landslides and other geological hazards.

(December 6, 2001) A massive landslide that occurred Dec. 1 in Zigui county near the Three Gorges dam still threatens the area, China Central Television (CCTV) reports.

(August 17, 2001) During a recent inspection tour of Fuling City, Gan Yuping, Vice-Mayor of Chongqing Municipality and the head of the municipality’s resettlement affairs, said the resettlement operation required more attention in certain key areas, reports Three Gorges Project Daily – a China Three Gorges Corporation publication.

(June 5, 2001) ‘Aridity, waterlogging, water pollution as well as soil erosion are four major problems threatening the development of water resources in China,’ water minister Wang Shucheng tells People’s Daily.

(March 29, 2001) A Three Gorges Probe exclusive: Civil strife and corruption will continue to plague world’s largest civil works project, predicts respected sociologist Dr. Wei Yi.

(March 27, 2001) ‘A recent scientific report shows that over 60 per cent of the world’s 227 largest rivers have been fragmented by dams, leading to the destruction of wetlands, a decline in freshwater species … and the forced displacement of millions of people.’

(March 7, 2001) The China News Service (Zhongxin She) reports that members of the China People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Chongqing Municipality, are appealing to the central government to build the middle of three water intakes for the mammoth south-north water diversion scheme at the Three Gorges reservoir, rather than at the Danjiangkou reservoir on the Han River.