Preserving the Salween River's Natural Heritage

Right to Water organization, editorial, 7 May 2004

[Publisher' note: I have not tried to rationalize the logical structure of this document.]

Premier Wen Jiabao's unprecedented decision to suspend the 13 dams project on the Salween River (Gyalmo Ngulchu in Tibetan, Nu Jiang in Chinese) is indeed a courageous, incremental step towards sustainable development for a government that in the past has shown limited concern about the environmental and social impacts of the public works undertaken by its Ministry of Water Resources.

As the project proponents argue, the proposed 13 dams would have generated over 21,000 MW of power and brought much needed economic growth to poverty stricken local people. Yet the government has chosen to listen to concerns about the project's impacts on the local ecology and indigenous peoples.

The region, as quoted in an official Chinese news source is home to virgin forests, 7,000 species of plants and 80 rare or endangered animal species, and people of 22 different ethnic minorities, including Tibetans. The highest and the northern-most of the 13 dams, the 307 meter tall Song Ta Dam, that is expected to displace more than 3,600 people is planned in Tibetan inhabited areas. The project also attracted downstream international concerns, as well as from the UN—nine of the three dams fall within the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There are many actors responsible for this refreshing development. Our admiration goes to the selfless Chinese environmental activists, scientists and journalists who have been working with local people and authorities on the ground, in educating the government and the world about Yunnan's diverse cultural and ecological wealth. Their innovative initiatives in educating the public about the Salween's ecological and cultural beauty—be it through photo exhibitions at post offices in Beijing or local sight-seeing tours for journalists—are inspiring examples for the rest of us. These innovative and devoted people are effectively helping China's leaders steer the country towards sustainable development.

Now that the project has been suspended, much depends on the environmental impact assessment process that is being done again under the auspices of the Beijing Institute of Surveying and Design, a hydropower engineering consultancy group. It is now critical for SEPA (China's State Environmental Protection Agency) to ensure that the study is conducted according to the highest standards set in the new Environmental Impact Assessment Law (EIAL). SEPA's role in promoting sustainable development in China is often overlooked. In fact, it was the passage of the more stringent EIAL last year that helped stop construction of the first of the 13 dams, Liuku Dam, months before Wen Jiabao's orders. SEPA can now ensure that the new environmental impact assessment includes the studies conducted by them last year, including the two tribunals of local people, experts and concerned units.

Construction Begins on Pubuguo Dam

(Source: Interfax: March 31;
www.newssc.org, March 29)

Construction of the Pubuguo Hydropower station, the largest hydropower station on the Dadu River (Gyalrong Gyamo Ngulchu in Tibetan), started on April 1, 2004. The project is expected to inundate an area of 84.14 square kilometers of land that includes 20 counties and townships, 65 villages and 8457 acres of agricultural land near the southeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau (approx. 103 degrees longitude and 29 degrees latitude). The total number of displaced people is expected to reach 100,894. Recent media reports express concern over the submergence of Hanyuan County as an area of cultural and historic importance. Hanyuan County is home to people of 17 different minority nationalities, including Tibetans.

The construction of the Pubuguo Dam marks the beginning of the exploitation of the Dadu River by Guodian Group, one of five major power companies in China. According to Interfax, investment on the project is calculated at RMB 16.651 billion (USD 2.01 billion) with a total installed capacity of 3.3 million KW and a capacity to produce 14.58 billion KW of electricity annually upon completion in 2011. The multi-purpose project is designed to generate electricity and prevent flooding and silt flow into downstream dams such as the Three Gorges Dam. According to a senior official with the Guodian Dadu River Hydropower Station, the Dadu River will be sealed up by December this year to ensure that the first unit in the project will go into operation in 2008.

Source: TRIN-GYI-PHO-NYA: TIBET'S ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT DIGEST
Tibet Justice Center, 2288 Fulton Street, Suite 312, Berkeley, CA 94704
May 6, 2004, Vol. 2, No. 3

I. Editorial: Preserving the Salween River's Natural Heritage

Premier Wen Jiabao's unprecedented decision to suspend the 13 dams project on the Salween River (Gyalmo Ngulchu in Tibetan, Nu Jiang in Chinese) is indeed a courageous, incremental step towards sustainable development for a government that in the past has shown limited concern about the environmental and social impacts of the public works undertaken by its Ministry of Water Resources.

As the project proponents argue, the proposed 13 dams would have generated over 21,000 MW of power and brought much needed economic growth to poverty stricken local people. Yet the government has chosen to listen to concerns about the project's impacts on the local ecology and indigenous peoples. The region, as quoted in an official Chinese news source is home to virgin forests, 7,000 species of plants and 80 rare or endangered animal species, and people of 22 different ethnic minorities, including Tibetans.

The highest and the northern-most of the 13 dams, the 307 meter tall Song Ta Dam, that is expected to displace more than 3,600 people is planned in Tibetan inhabited areas. The project also attracted downstream international concerns, as well as from the UN—nine of the three dams fall within the UNESCO World Heritage Site.

There are many actors responsible for this refreshing development. Our admiration goes to the selfless Chinese environmental activists, scientists and journalists who have been working with local people and authorities on the ground, in educating the government and the world about Yunnan?s diverse cultural and ecological wealth. Their innovative initiatives in educating the public about the Salween?s ecological and cultural beauty—be it through photo exhibitions at post offices in Beijing or local sight-seeing tours for journalists—are inspiring examples for the rest of us. These innovative and devoted people are effectively helping China's leaders steer the country towards sustainable development.

Now that the project has been suspended, much depends on the environmental impact assessment process that is being done again under the auspices of the Beijing Institute of Surveying and Design, a hydropower engineering consultancy group. It is now critical for SEPA (China?s State Environmental Protection Agency) to ensure that the study is conducted according to the highest standards set in the new Environmental Impact Assessment Law (EIAL). SEPA's role in promoting sustainable development in China is often overlooked. In fact, it was the passage of the more stringent EIAL last year that helped stop construction of the first of the 13 dams, Liuku Dam, months before Wen Jiabao's orders. SEPA can now ensure that the new environmental impact assessment includes the studies conducted by them last year, including the two tribunals of local people, experts and concerned units.

II. Construction Begins on Pubuguo Dam

(Source: Interfax: March 31;
www.newssc.org, March 29)

Construction of the Pubuguo Hydropower station, the largest hydropower station on the Dadu River (Gyalrong Gyamo Ngulchu in Tibetan), started on April 1, 2004. The project is expected to inundate an area of 84.14 square kilometers of land that includes 20 counties and townships, 65 villages and 8457 acres of agricultural land near the southeastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau (approx. 103 degrees longitude and 29 degrees latitude). The total number of displaced people is expected to reach 100,894. Recent media reports express concern over the submergence of Hanyuan County as an area of cultural and historic importance. Hanyuan County is home to people of 17 different minority nationalities, including Tibetans.

The construction of the Pubuguo Dam marks the beginning of the exploitation of the Dadu River by Guodian Group, one of five major power companies in China. According to Interfax, investment on the project is calculated at RMB 16.651 billion (USD 2.01 billion) with a total installed capacity of 3.3 million KW and a capacity to produce 14.58 billion KW of electricity annually upon completion in 2011. The multi-purpose project is designed to generate electricity and prevent flooding and silt flow into downstream dams such as the Three Gorges Dam.

According to a senior official with the Guodian Dadu River Hydropower Station, the Dadu River will be sealed up by December this year to ensure that the first unit in the project will go into operation in 2008.

Source: TRIN-GYI-PHO-NYA: TIBET'S ENVIRONMENT AND DEVELOPMENT DIGEST
Tibet Justice Center, 2288 Fulton Street,
Suite 312, Berkeley, CA 94704