Century Cruises

Three Gorges Dam

The globe's largest hydroelectric project, the dam was completed in May 2006 after 50 years of research and nearly 13 years of construction. It is 600 feet high and nearly 1.5 miles long. When the dam is fully operational in early 2009, it will turn 26 hydropower turbines and create a 400-mile-long reservoir. The total estimated cost of the project ranges from $20 billion to $25 billion, and both international and Chinese tourists have turned out in droves to view the structure.

Chinese officials hail the Three Gorges Dam as the ultimate testament to human ingenuity; second only to the country's fabled Great Wall. It is being called an economic and technological boom for central China. The reservoir will open the country's remote interior to new trade routes, allowing large freighters to sail an additional 1,500 miles inland to the developing commercial hub of Chongqing.

The dam is also expected to control flooding along the Yangtze. This area has lost nearly 1 million lives in the last 100 years due to flooding. When completely operational, it will produce the energy of 15 nuclear power plants -- enough to fulfill one-ninth of the country's electricity needs, lessening China 's dependency on coal and other fossil fuels.

But the dam also has sparked criticism from some, thrusting the project into the glare of the international media spotlight. Environmentalists charge that pollutants have accumulated at key construction sites and, without proper removal, will soon leak into the growing reservoir and the Yangtze, eventually flowing downstream to the East China Sea.

Animal activists believe that several water-dwelling species -- including the nearly extinct baiji, or Yangtze River dolphin -- have lost critical habitat due to the changing course of the river and an increase in water contaminants. Historians have also joined the list of detractors, raising concerns about hundreds of archaeological sites, some up to 4,000 years old, that will disappear under the rising waters of the reservoir.

There have been charges of corruption as well, with some claiming that back door deals and bribery among construction officials has led to shoddy workmanship, endangering thousands of Chinese citizens who make their home below the dam.

Over the years, Chinese officials have attempted to stem the tide of controversy. In 1999, former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji suggested that a panel of international engineers inspect the dam for safety as the project neared completion. In late 2006, the dam's developers spent nearly $2.5 million for a ship that has the ability to clear 7 million feet of garbage from the Yangtze each year. And, as the rising reservoir is expected to submerge hundreds of villages and displace some 1.2 million people, government aid has been distributed to build new homes and create farmland for the needy residents of the Yangtze River Valley.

As the river rises, so does demand for Yangtze River cruises, the tourism in this area is likely shatter all previous records. There's no doubt that the massive Three Gorges Dam and the Yangtze River will continue to attract tourists from around the world for many decades to come.