14 DAY TRIAL // News from China says that the country is getting ready to build yet another mega dam. Information made available to the general public suggests that, once completed, this dam will be the world's tallest, meaning that it will measure 314 meters (1,030 feet) in height.
The dam is expected to be built by a subsidiary of one of China's state-owned power companies, i.e. the Guodian Group. The facility will be erected in the country's southwestern Sichuan province, along the Dadu River.
Should things go as planned, the dam will be up and running in about 10 years. Specialists say that the costs for this project will most likely amount to a whopping £2.9bn (€3.42bn / $4.40bn).
The engineers responsible for designing this dam estimate that its energy generating capacity will be one of 8bn KW-hours per year.
Interestingly enough, it appears that Chinese environmental authorities have agreed to give the green light to this project despite their being fully aware of the devastating effects that its being built and becoming operable will have on several endangered plant and animal species. Mongabay quotes a statement issued by the country's Environment Ministry, which reportedly reads as follows:
“The project will affect the spawning and movement of rare fish species, as well as the growth of endangered plants, including the Chinese yew, which is under first-class state protection.”
The same source informs us that the environmental authorities who have approved of this project are fairly confident that, by rolling out several green-oriented measures, they will be able to minimize the damage caused by this dam to the environment.
Given the scale of the project, odds are that local human communities will have to be relocated.
The decision to build this dam need be linked to China's wishing to improve on its ecological footprint by phasing out fossil fuels.
Thus, the country hopes that by the year 2020, it will have succeeded in having 15% of its energy demands met by non-fossil power sources.
Presently, this particular hydropower project is waiting to be approved by the country's state council.