The Three Gorges Project, whose mammoth dam was completed on Saturday, will acquire the capability of combating a super big flood occurring once in 100 years as of this year and will start to take effect in flood control two years ahead of schedule.

In an interview with Xinhua on Saturday, Li Yong'an, general manager of China Yangtze River Three Gorges Project Development Corporation (CYRTGPDC), heralded Saturday's completion of the gigantic dam to a landmark in the construction of the Three Gorges Project.

"Even if there is a major flood this summer, the Three Gorges Project is capable of regulating flooded waters in an effective way and preventing 15 million people on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and their property from damages," said the general manager.

Built with 16.1 million cu m of concrete, the Three Gorges Dam is considered the largest reinforced concrete dam in the world. A minor cofferdam has been constructed to facilitate building of the mega dam on the southern bank of the Yangtze River. The mega dam will be put to holding water when the minor cofferdam is blast away on June 6.

In accordance with a flood control plan approved by the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters, the level of water stored in the Three Gorges Reservoir will be kept below 150 meters during the flood season in this summer.

However, if an emergency arises, the water level in the reservoir can be raised to control the water flow in the mainstream of the Yangtze and to alleviate the pressure on the middle and lower reaches of the mighty river, said Li.

As a key facility to hold back flooded water, the Three Gorges Reservoir is capable of holding 39.3 billion cu m of water, including a space of 22.15 billion cu m for extra flooded water when it attains a normal water level of 175 meters.

With a length of more than 6,300 km and a natural fall of 5,400 meters from the west to the east, the flood-prone Yangtze River is the largest of the kind in China and the third largest in the world.

Most of the flooded areas are located at the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze, which are economically developed regions where 15 million residents live and 1.5 million hectares of farmland exit. Four major floods occurred in the regions in the 20th century, with the most recent one occurring in 1998 killing 1,526 people.

Professor Wang Jun, a flood control specialist, said the Three Gorges Project, situated at the juncture of the upper reaches of the Yangtze and its middle reaches, could play an irreplaceable role in holding back an influx of water from areas within one million sq km along the upper reaches of the Yangtze.

Dr.Wang Wei, a specialist with the Headquarters for Yangtze River Flood Control, said in accordance with the water control plan for the Three Gorges Reservoir in this summer flood season, the Three Gorges Reservoir is capable of taking the initiative to store up flooded water by providing a space of containing 7.29 billion cu m of flooded water, or just one third of the Three Gorges Project's total flood control capacity, when necessary.

An estimate given by the Yangtze River Water Resources Committee shows after the construction of the Three Gorges Project, an average of 23,000 hectare of farmland might be spared from inundation each year, and plus the reduced losses spared from inundation of urban residential quarters, the annual benefit could come to two billion yuan (247 million U.S. dollars) which will otherwise have been lost judging by the economic standard and constant prices of 1992, one year before the Three Gorges Project began building.

The fact that the Three Gorges Project begins to take effect in flood control does not necessarily mean no worries left in the flood control of the Yangtze River, and the main embankments built along both banks of the Yangtze are direct barriers that will help hold back the swollen waters in the Yangtze, said Li Yong'an, the CYRTGPDC general manager.

"China has been investing heavily in constructing a comprehensive flood control network on the Yangtze River, which has the Three Gorges Project as the backbone facility, supported by an upward of 30,000 km of embankments along the Yangtze and specially built zones for diversion and storage of 50 billion cu m of flooded waters," said Li.

Launched in 1993, the Three Gorges Project, including the 2,309-meter-long, 185-meter-high dam with 26 power generators, is being built in three phases on the middle reaches of the Yangtze, China's longest river.

In addition to flood control functions, the gigantic project is expected to generate 84.7 billion kwh of electricity annually when it is finally completed.

The entire project will be completed by 2008, a year ahead of schedule.

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