Yangtze Managing Flashcards
The river Yangtze is the ________ longest river in the world.
Third
Why is seasonal flooding common around the Yangtze?
China has a rainy season (June-August) which makes it prone to seasonal flooding.
Why does flooding cause particularly large problems in China?
There is lots of farmland and loads of major cities next to the river (e.g. Nanjing, Wuhan)
How many major floods have occurred in the last century?
5 major floods have occurred in the last centuary
When was the most recent flood? And what were the effects of it?
The most recent flood was in 1998, 3000 people died and 14million homeless
How many dams are planned or under construction on the river Yangtze?
46 dams are planned or under construction on the river Yangtze
Which is the biggest dam in the river Yangtze?
When did work begin on it?
Describe the scale of this dam?
What has been built alongside the dam?
The three gorges dam is the largest dam on the Yangtze.
Work begun on it in 1994.
~It is 101m high.
~The reservoir is building up behind the dam. The dam has the capacity to store around 22km3 of flood water.
~The Largest HEP station in the world, with 26 turbines built into the dam
Locks have been built alongside the dam so ships can get past.
What, aside from dams, have been built to control flooding of the river Yangtze?
3600km of levees have been built along the middle and lower parts of the river.
The river Yangtze flows through which country?
China
What are the positive effects of the three gorges dam?
1) Reduced major flooding from once every 10 years to once every 100 years.
2) HEP power has capacity to provide 3% of China’s electricity demand.
3) reduced flooding has made it safer to navigate up the Yangtze.
River shipping has also increased as bigger ships can now travel up the the river as the reservoirs is deeper than the old river.
What are the Negative effects of the three gorges dam?
1) RELOCATING PEOPLE
Due to the reservoirs rising water level, it’s thought that between 1.5-2million people in total will have to relocate by the time it’s full.
13cities and 1300 villages will be submerged.
2) FLOODING OF LAND WITH VALUE
1300sites of cultural and historic interest will be flooded as water level rises.
E.g Zhang Fei temple will be submerged.
650factories submerged & lots of farmland.
3) DESTRUCTION OF HABITATS
Siberian crane spends winter in wetlands below the dam, which are expected to be affected by less frequent flooding.
There are fewer than 100Baji dolphins left in Yangtze, dam could reduce food supply
4) DOESNT PROTECT EVERYONE
Rising water levels in the reservoirs increase flooding of the tributaries that lead into it. E.g the Daning river (Dane like damned by the dam)
Increased in water levels in tributaries will also increase erosion of river banks, causing collapses and landslides.
5) SEDIMENT TRANSPORTATION DISRUPTED
A huge amount of sediment is usually carried down the river. The dam will trap sediment, which could lead to failure of the dam and cause catastrophic flooding.
What problems have levees caused?
The levees on the Yangtze broke in 1998 which contributed to major flooding.
What happened to the levees after they broke during the 1998 flood?
They were re-inforced. They were effective at reducing flooding in 2002. (Though these floods were less sever the than 1998 ones)
