Mountain Research and Development Vol 26 No 2 May 2006: 109–114 Yao Yonghui Large-Scale Hydroelectric Projects Zhang Baiping Ma Xiaoding and Mountain Development on the Ma Peng Upper Yangtze River 109 The upper Yangtze River is extremely rich in the local economy. The local government hydropower, with 9 large-scale hydropower faces the dilemma of supporting national projects planned and 2 under construction. hydropower development on the one hand, Current and projected large-scale hydropow- and safeguarding the interests of local peo- er projects pose difficult challenges as well ple on the other. Local regional development as great hope for development of local requires general planning and a proper impoverished areas. There are great difficul- national policy for resettling dam migrants. ties in coordinating hydropower development A special national eco-district is proposed and local regional development, owing to to delimit reaches in the upper Yangtze Riv- gaps in national policies, clear separation er area that will provide ecological security between enterprise and local communities, for the developed reaches and the dams and problems with local management and lower down on the Yangtze River. The appeal of hydropower on the and many dam projects provide multi- upper Yangtze River ple benefits. By 2020, China aims to produce China is expected to quadruple its gross 200–240 GW of hydroelectricity, which domestic product (GDP) between 2001 means adding 7–9 GW of new hydropower and 2020, while doubling its use of capacity per year. To meet this goal, China energy during the same period. Owing will need to build the equivalent of rough- to the rising price of oil in the world ly 1 Three Gorges dam every 2 years. For- and the high risk associated with tunately, there is an enormous potential nuclear energy, hydropower develop- for hydroelectric power in the upper ment has become a major energy strate- reaches of the Yangtze River, especially in gy worldwide, with a substantial increase the section of the mainstream above Yibin in reliance on hydropower in China. and below Yushu, namely the Jinsha River FIGURE 1 The Yangtze and The appeal of hydropower is clear: it is (Figure 1). Flowing for 2360 km from the Three Gorges Reservoir region, with the location of the 4 potentially an emissions-free way to eastern Tibetan Plateau to the low-lying planned dams upstream, in the meet China’s expanding energy needs, Sichuan Basin, with a drop of 3280 m, the lower Jinsha River. (Map by authors) Yao Yonghui, Zhang Baiping, Ma Xiaoding, and Ma Peng TABLE 1 Characteristics of the main hydropower projects in the lower Jinsha River compared with the Three Gorges 110 dam. (Source: Wu 2004) Storage capacity Installed capacity Investment Dam (billion m3) (GW) Migrants (Yuan/kWh)b) Wudongde 4.0 7.4 14,200 Baihetan 19.2 12.0 80,500 0.797 Xiluodua) 12.9 12.6 32,000 0.796 Xiangjiabaa) 5.2 6.0 79,000 0.765 (97,300) Three Gorges 39.3 18.2 120,000 1.07 a) Under construction b) 8 Yuan ≈ US$ 1 Jinsha River has an enormous potential to ment per unit of energy is generally less supply hydropower—as high as 112.4 GW, than 0.8 yuan/kWh (US$ 0.1/kWh), obvi- of which about 75.120 GW is exploitable. ously lower than the 1.07 yuan/kWh (US$ Currently, a total of 9 hydroelectric 0.13/kWh) for the Three Gorges. In par- dams have been planned for the middle ticular, there are far fewer people to be and lower Jinsha River reaches, 4 of which resettled compared with the enormous are in the lower Jinsha River (Figure 1). number (1.2 million) resettled as a result The 4 planned reservoirs have a total of the Three Gorges project. Therefore, installed capacity of 38 GW, more than hydropower development along the Jinsha double that of the Three Gorges (18.2 River is believed to be quite feasible. GW). Hydropower development unfolded in 2003, with the start of the Xiluodu proj- Positive and negative impacts of ect, the second largest hydroelectric proj- large-scale hydroelectric projects ect in China, following upon water storage and power generation at the world-famous Three of the 4 hydropower projects in the Three Gorges project located at the end lower Jinsha River—Baihetan, Xiluodu, of the middle Yangtze River. In this sense, and Xiangjiaba—mainly affect Zhaotong construction of the Three Gorges dam was City on the eastern bank of the lower Jin- only the prelude to hydroelectric develop- sha River (Figure 1), in the northeast of FIGURE 2 Buildings on concrete stilts ment in the Yangtze River. Yunnan Province. Typically densely popu- show the extreme scarcity of flat land Development of hydroelectric energy lated (5.2 million inhabitants in 2004) suitable for construction in the densely in the lower Jinsha River has proven to be with limited available land (23,020 km2), populated Zhaotong City area. (photo by Zhang Baiping very cost-effective (Table 1). The invest- this area is characterized by poverty, mountainous terrain, and ecological fragility (Figure 2). The city itself is also characterized by poverty, with a very low annual per capita income of less than US$ 800. The local government and residents have good reasons for and high expecta- tions regarding hydropower projects to promote the regional economy. Potential benefits Theoretically, major investments due to hydropower projects should be a powerful driver in developing the local society and economy. Hydropower projects could pro- vide local residents with clean energy, hopefully reducing forest logging, protect- ing the mountain ecosystem, and promot- ing the regional economy. Large water Mountain Research and Development Vol 26 No 2 May 2006 Development 111 surfaces could regulate the local climate. resettled in mountainous areas. “Up- Waterways could be opened from Shuifu slope displacement,” ie moving popula- (very close to Xiangjiaba) to Xiluodu, tions up the slopes, has been deter- greatly enhancing the accessibility of mined as the main model of resettle- counties along the river. Water storage ment. But moving to higher and from these projects could enormously steeper mountain slopes means worse expand water bodies and improve produc- conditions both for life, production, tion conditions for the aquatic industry. and the environment. Moreover, the projects could provide • Low compensation for dam resettlement. opportunities for employment, building Compensation for dam resettlement is materials, and agricultural and other by- currently set at lower rates than reset- products. There is also a potential to opti- tlement for transportation projects or mize industrial structures. With compensa- urban development. Money to increase tion for migrant resettlement and displace- compensation could come from a ment, and reconstruction of cities and 0.0001 yuan (8 yuan ≈ US$ 1) tax on towns, enterprises, and infrastructure, it each kWh of electricity generated by a would be possible to upgrade low-yield new dam. A 1981 circular from the farmland, rationally redistribute the popu- Ministries of Water Resources and Pow- lation, greatly develop the secondary and er and the Ministry of Finance recom- tertiary sectors, and promote population mended precisely this tax, but it has flow from rural areas to cities and towns so never been implemented. as to reduce population pressure on agri- • No proper mechanisms to guarantee the vital cultural land, especially sloping farmland. interests of local residents. An administra- But past experience has also taught tive order from the government of Yun- that hydropower development will not nec- nan Province, in the name of support- essarily improve local social and economic ing national hydroelectric construction, conditions. The negative social and envi- can expel residents from the town ronmental effects of hydropower projects where they and their ancestors have appear now to be more obviously felt. Cur- lived for hundreds of years. The local rent and planned large-scale hydropower government and residents seem to have projects pose tough challenges as well as no alternatives. They have no opportu- great hopes for future development. nity to participate in decision-making processes relating to their lives and to Resettling migrants production. All relevant decisions have been made by the hydropower develop- The three hydropower projects in the low- ment enterprise and the provincial er Jinsha River will above all necessitate leaders. the resettlement of 180,000 residents • Dilemma for local governments. Local gov- (Table 2) and displacement of a whole ernments are in a very embarrassing county town and 9 townships in Zhaotong position, neither ignoring the lack of City. Although this figure—especially benefits for local residents nor oppos- when examined for each project—is much less than figures for the Three Gorges TABLE 2 Projected reduction of farmland area and projected displacement of population in Zhaotong project, the difficulty of resettlement is far City. (Sources: Wu 2004; Wu 2005) greater. The main reasons for this are the Inundated farmland (ha) Residents to be displaced following: Hydropower project • Difficult conditions for resettlement. Exter- Total Irrigated fields Total… …of which rural nal population displacement is almost Baihetan 4000 800 67,000 64,000 impossible, as hardly any places are willing to accept people for resettle- Xiluodu 1733 400 32,000 30,000 ment. People in this case have to be relocated in northeastern Yunnan. As Xiangjiaba 1600 533 85,000 55,000 stated above, this region has few patch- Total 7333 1733 182,000 149,000 es of flat land, hence people have to be Yao Yonghui, Zhang Baiping, Ma Xiaoding, and Ma Peng FIGURE 3 Slope farming and resulting erosion and land degradation processes in Dashabao, 112 Zhaotong City. (Photo by Zhang Baiping) land surface), steep slopes (nearly half the land has gradients higher than 25°), high precipitation (over 1000 mm), and wide- spread cultivation on sloping land (more than 70% of its farmland is on steep mountain slopes).