Geography: the Three Gorges Dam (China)

?
  • Created by: Barjun
  • Created on: 06-05-17 11:53

Geography: the Three Gorges Dam (China)

Advantages

  • It protects 2.5 million people and lots of businesses as well.
  • It prevents financial loss by floods
  • It creates jobs for the locals
  • It generates a lot of China's power thanks to its hydro-electric power generators
  • It facilitates shipping (and therefore trade) as the water levels have risen, meaning that the bottoms of the ships won't scrape the bottom of the channel

Disadvantages

  • If the dam breaks, then homes, factories and other establishments would be completely destroyed by the overpowering amount of water flooding them. This risk is increased by earthquakes.
  • Corruption within the government means that the dam was built instead of creating homes.
  • It costs a lot of money to build and to maintain
  • While it helps traffic near the dam, further away, the risk of flooding has increased.
  • Many homes, factories and archaeological sites were flooded in the creation of the dam and many species are nearly extinct now.
  • Acid rain caused by the generators has affected a third of China's population

Evaluation

The Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River in China does help the people who live in the many villages, towns and cities near the river and also helps China's government and economy by harnessing the water and turning it into energy for free, but these generators have a bad effect on the rest of China, causing side effects that stay with them for life. Also, the dam has moved thousands, or maybe even millions of people away from their homes and has stolen money that was meant for housing. In total, it shouldn't have been created as it overall had a bad effect on China. Instead, a number of smaller defences should have been made near the towns that were to be protected instead of making one big one.

Comments

No comments have yet been made