Hydropower development to cut Jinsha River into sections

Jinsha River will be cut into sections by 25 reservoirs, located at every 100 km, in the near future, the Dazhong Daily reported.

The development plan is dominated by five hydropower magnates.

The development plan includes installing 25 reservoirs with an overall capacity equaling that of four Three Gorges Dams, according to Sichuan-based Hengduan Mountains Research Institute and local government.

Twenty-four reservoirs are monopolized by five state-run corporations, namely China Three Gorges, China Resources, China Datang, China Huadian and China Huaneng.

Only the Jin'an Bridge Power Station was constructed by privately-run Hanneng Shareholding Group.

The 2,308-km long Jinsha River flows through Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces in southwest China.

The hydropower development plans for the river took off in 2008.

Scientists worry that reservoirs being built in large numbers in the area, would lead to consequences bad beyond imaginable, especially in Hunan and Jiangxi provinces in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Yang Yong, a leading scientist of the research institute, said "The development means the long, surging river will be carved into numerous sections of calm waters, and lose its grandeur forever."

Weng Lida, director of the Yangtze River Water Resources Protection Bureau, said that the development plan only gives consideration to hydropower and hardly takes into account the interests of other parties involved."

"The droughts in Dongting and Poyang lakes in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River might be getting worse," said Weng, "With the completion of the water storage project, the silt will be another obvious and
unavoidable problem."

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