Yangtze River. Geomorphology, Hydrology, and the Three Gorges Dam. Chris Pavlovich, Lauren Ceckowski Brian Singer, Aveline Cruickshank

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1 Yangtze River Geomorphology, Hydrology, and the Three Gorges Dam Chris Pavlovich, Lauren Ceckowski Brian Singer, Aveline Cruickshank

2 Yangtze River: Vital Stats Length: 3,915 mi (6,300 km) - third longest Annual Discharge: 900 km 3 year 1 - fifth largest Peak annual discharge: 110,00 m 3 /s Mean annual discharge: 30,166 m 3 /s Drainage basin area: 1.8 x 10 6 km 2 (largest in SE Asia) Current average suspended sediment discharge: 480 million tons/year -1

3 Significance of the Yangtze The Yangtze River basin is home to approximately 400 million people 1/3 of the Chinese population Along with the United States, China was overenthusiastic with their dam construction in the post WWII era subsequently the Yangtze is home to nearly 50,000 dams Yangtze an ideal site for observation of the effects of dams particularly on sediment discharge

4 Geology of the Yangtze The Plateau of Tibet marks the area where the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates collide The Northern portion of the Yangtze drains across this plateau The Yangtze flows from the Tibetan Plateau through eroded mountainous regions

Hydrology of the Yangtze Monsoon winds bring significant precipitation to the Yangtze basin Floods will begin in early spring and can occur until the end of fall Flooding and flood damage are

5 Hydrology of the Yangtze Monsoon winds bring significant precipitation to the Yangtze basin Floods will begin in early spring and can occur until the end of fall Flooding and flood damage are the primary reasons the Three Gorges Dam was built The water discharge of the Yangtze is incredible (greater than the Huang He) but it has decreased since the completion of the Three Gorges Dam

6 Hydrograph: Yangtze River

7 Fishing on the Yangtze The Yangtze is home to around 1/3 of the Chinese population, so many people rely on the river to support themselves Carp and variations of the carp species are of vital economic importance Carp rely on the rise in water level during the monsoons to breed The construction of the TGD has prevented this natural rise from occurring, which has jeopardized the carp population There is already a 3-month yearly ban on fishing in place, to allow fish populations to replenish, but it has become clear that a longer break will be necessary

8 Damming along the Yangtze Over 700 tributaries ~ 50,000 Dams

9 Damming along the Yangtze

10 Three Gorges Dam Sandauping, China

11 The Three Gorges Qutang Gorge Xiling Gorge Wu Gorge

Three Gorges Dam: Vital Stats Height - 181 m (594 ft) Length - 2,335 m (7,661 ft) Spillway capacity - 116,000 m 3

12 Three Gorges Dam: Vital Stats Height m (594 ft) Length - 2,335 m (7,661 ft) Spillway capacity - 116,000 m 3 /s (4,100,000 cu ft/s) Installed capacity - 18,200 MW Maximum capacity - 22,500 MW Annual generation - 80,000 GWh

13 Three Gorges Dam Reservoir

Three Gorges Dam Reservoir Three Gorges Reservoir Capacity - 39.3 km 3 (9.

14 Three Gorges Dam Reservoir Three Gorges Reservoir Capacity km 3 (9.4 cu mi) Surface area 1,045 km 2 (403 sq mi) Catchment Area - 1,000,000 km 2 (390,000 sq mi) Water level raised 566 ft

15 Politics First proposed in 1919-Supported by leader of the Chinese Republic National Peoples Congress approved TGD in 1992 Passed by smallest margin in legislature s history Serious controversy over TGD construction government found benefits outweighed negative effects

Construction Began on Dec 14 th 1994 200,000 cu meters of concrete, 463,000 tons of steel

16 Construction Began on Dec 14 th ,000 cu meters of concrete, 463,000 tons of steel Completed in 2009 Estimated cost ~ 22.5 billion dollars Costs will be covered after 5 8 years of generation

17 Advantages: Hydropower Worlds largest Hydropower plant Low operations and maintenance costs Renewable resource TGD produces energy = 15 nuclear power plants Long economic Life ( yrs) Reduced Greenhouse gas emissions , TGD power production = 84 million tons of standard coal, reducing carbon dioxide by 190 million tons

18 Hydropower

19 Advantages: Flood Control One of the most significant functions of TGD Historically population in lower regions suffered great losses from flooding in human lives and property 1931 flood caused 3 million deaths flooding and starvation TGD reduces seasonal flooding in lower Yangtze Flooding reduced from 1 in 10 yrs to 1 in 100 yrs

20 Advantages: Navigation Ship Locks installed for river traffic to bypass the dam Allow raising and lowering of boats between stretches of water of different levels Locks made navigation much safer Intended to increase shipping from 10 million tons annually to 100 million tons annually Cut transportation costs by 30-37%

21 Disadvantages: Decline in Water Quality Water quality in reservoir in 2003 was at levels II and III (drinking water I, II, or III) Since 2004 increase in algae blooms Caused by collection of fertilizer runoff = hypoxia 1,600 factories and abandoned mines will be submerged releasing toxins Near by villagers need to find new water sources Stagnant water leads to higher spread of diseases

22 Alagae Blooms

23 Disadvantages: Impacts on Sediment TGD traps 172 million tons annually Average trapping efficiency of 75% Build up lowers storage capacity Less sediment downstream Banks more vulnerable to flooding and collapse Bank collapse in Yueyang, 2006

24 Disadvantage: Impacts on Sediment

25 The sediment flux will decrease to below 90 million tons in the near future 18% of the amount observed in the 1950s

26 Disadvantages: Loss of Biodiversity 6000 plant species, 500 terrestrial species, and 160 fish species in TGD region Population migration lead to terrestrial habitat loss and fragmentation Water biota habitat negatively effected by TGD Fragmented habitats TGD barrier Modified nutrient and sediment flow Baiji Dolphin, Finless Porpoise, Chinese Paddlefish

28 Disadvantages: Population Displacement Major controversy of the TGD Reservoir inundates 2 cities, 11 counties, 140 towns, 326 townships and 1351 villages About 23,800 hectares More than 1.1 people had to be resettled 45% of the total cost of TGD

29 Disadvantages: Cultural Impacts Major loss of farmland Increase crop imports Loss of 1300 archeological sites due to submersion Zhangfei Temple White Crane Ridge Dachang Ancient Town

30 Works Cited Large Rivers Avijit Gupta Chapters 21, 24, 29 Three Gorges Project: Efforts and challenges for the environment - Bo-Jie Fu 50,000 dams later: Erosion of the Yangtze River and its delta S.L. Yang Three Gorges Dam: The environmental argument surrounding Chinas super dam Richard Edmonds

Task 1: Project Description and Detailed Outline Three Gorges Dam

Task 1: Project Description and Detailed Outline Three Gorges Dam Alex Buchanan Rudy Koester Ali Elahi Michael Jane I. Description A. Largest hydroelectric dam in the world 1) Generating capacity of 18,200