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Premier Wen Jiabao Reported to Halt Dam Plans for Nu River
For Immediate Release
International Rivers Network--contact Doris Shen 510-848-1155 x301
Tibet Justice Center--contact Tashi Tsering 510-486-0588
International human rights and environmental organizations welcome Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s order to halt plans for dams on the Nujiang / Salween River. Hong Kong’s Ta Kung Pao newspaper reported on April 1 that Premier Wen had ordered a “suspension” of the plans saying that such a controversial large dam plan should be "seriously reviewed and decided scientifically.”
The controversial Nu River hydro scheme is the subject of much criticism from downstream riparian residents, Chinese individuals, civil society groups and international organizations. Over eighty groups from Burma and Thailand wrote to China’s government last December with concerns over the impacts to fisheries and downstream ecology and safety.
Proposed dam sites on the Nu River are very close to the Three Parallel Rivers Area, which is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Last month, UNESCO expressed concern over the dam’s impacts to the World Heritage Area and requested that an environmental impact assessment of the dams be submitted for review.
The news comes at a time when local officials in China’s southwestern region have been rampantly brokering dam construction deals in biologically and culturally sensitive areas without central government oversight. Sites for large dams include Tibetan Mugecuo lake, revered for centuries as a holy and spiritual site, and the Lancang/Upper Mekong, where large dams have already caused severe water fluctuations downstream in Thailand and Laos. Past energy forecasts indicate China plans to nearly double hydropower capacity to over 120GW by 2010. In late March, however, the State Council's Energy Research Centre recommended that demand-side management be the major approach to solving power shortages.
“A decision by top-level Chinese leadership to reject the Nu River projects on environmental and social grounds marks an important change. It reflects a growing commitment to openness, environmental protection, and reduction of social inequalities. We hope that this approach will be applied to decisions concerning large dam construction in other areas of China.” says Doris Shen-Hoover, China Program Coordinator for International Rivers Network.
Tashi Tsering, Environment and Development Program Director at Tibet Justice Center remarks, “We welcome this decision by the Chinese leadership that respects people's concerns. We urge Wen Jiabao to strongly consider revoking the dam project on Mugecuo which is a unique, sacred and spiritual site, rich in biodiversity.”
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-“Chinese Premier rejects Nujiang dams,” Ta Kung Pao. Original Chinese version
-Letter to Chinese leaders from Thai and Burmese groups concerned about downstream impacts of Nu River dams.
-International Sign-on letter from global environmental and human rights groups
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