Development-oriented resettlement

From 1985 to 1993, the government invested 1. 2 billion yuan( $ 137 million)for experimental settlement in the pilot areas. These include 14,000 ha.of newly opened and improved terraced fields, 1500 items of construction of buildings, houses, bridges, roads and water supply projects for resettlement,and the resettlement of 30,000 migrants and 100 factors.All these projects have already achieved tangible economic returns and are well received by the settlers.Valuable experiences have fully proved that the development-oriented policy provides a very good opportunity for the settlers to free themselves from poverty.That's why the construction of the Project has brought about a once- in- the- blue -moon opportunity for economic boom for the regions around the reservoir.

Transferring water from the south to the north

 The annual runoff of the Yangtze River into the sea is 23 times more than that of the yellow River.It is estimated that the total volume of water to be consumed in the Yangtze valley after the year 2000 will be approximately 210 billion m³ a year , and about half of it can be recycled.However North China,especially Beijing suffered several severe water shortages.In 1981, the water crisis forced the thermal power plants to stop operation,which resulted in industry shortages. which resulted in industry losses of about 2 billion yuan ( $ 229 million).It is very common that high buildings have inadequate water supply,but on the other hand,luxury hotels are mushrooming.To alleviate this intense situation,Beijing has to get water supply from Guanting and Miyun reservoirs which were originally planned mainly for agriculture irrigation. It is estimated that the amount of water shortage each year in Beijing, Zhengzhou and several other northern cities after the year 2000 total 40 billion m³.The rise to 175 meters of the Danjiangkou Dam,which is the source for transferring water from the South to the North,can only bring the water transfer volume up to 23 billion m³.What is the way out? The Yangtze Three Gorges Project .After the completion of the TGP,by taking advantage of the time between 0:00 to 6:00am,when power transmission load is sharply released, the water lever of the TGD will be raised by a dozen meters with water from Xiangxi River,a tributary in the backwater area,enabling the water to run through Shenlongjia to the Danjiangkou Reservoir and further through Henan,Hebei Provinces and then finally to Beijing and Tianjin ,consequently,alleviating the water shortage in these areas. The above facts show the transferring water from the South to the North can not only relieve the water shortage in the North, but also reduce the transportation pressure and high demand for farmland caused by transferring coal from the South to the North. It's of great immediate and historical significance for ecological protection and reducing pollution.

Water Supply and Irrigation

 As we know, the North China plain makes up 40% of China's cultivated land, but its river runoff takes up only 6.5% of the country's total. In the recent few decades, North China has been developing very rapidly in industry, agriculture, business, trade, science and tourism. All these, together with the population explosion have made water crisis in these areas worse than ever.Many rivers such as Shaying River, Daqing River and Ziya River which used to be very highly developed in navigation are no longer suitable for navigation now. The famous Baiyangdian Lake has dried up several times and even the Yellow River nearly dried up in 1992. For water supply and irrigation, the limited underground water has been overextracted and this is after all an utterly inadequate measure. Water is vital to these areas because these are important production areas of grain and cotton in China. The estimated annual shortage of water in these areas is about 70 billion m³. The only way to alleviate the pressing needs is to build the TGP. Further extension of the transferring canal from Beijing to the Han River will enable the water of the Yangtze to flow to the North. Thus the thirsty land can get watered and the fertile land of China will overflow even more fresh with powerful vigor.