Gorges dam could endure terror attacks
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2006-05-18 10:51
THREE GORGES DAM SITE, Hubei Province -- The Three Gorges Dam is strong
enough to resist terrorist attacks, Cao Guangjing, deputy general manager of
China Yangtze River Three Gorges Project Development Corporation, said
Wednesday.
Cao told a news conference that China has enough manpower and equipment to
guard the important parts, such as the dam, power plant and lock of the Three
Gorges Project.
He said that China took into consideration how to deal with military attacks
when the project was first designed. In November last year, China staged an
anti-terror drill at the construction site and instituted emergency plans for
terrorist attacks by regular weapons or nuclear weapons.
According to the corporation's latest schedule, the construction of the dam
structure will be finished on May 20, ten months ahead of schedule, Cao said.
"The construction of the Three Gorges Project is beneficial to the economic
growth of China and we cannot reject development for fears of terrorism," he
said.
Launched in 1993, the Three Gorges Project, including a 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.
The gigantic project is expected to generate 84.7 billion kwh of electricity
annually when it is finally completed.
Besides its huge power generating capacity, the project is expected to tame
flooding on the Yangtze, fuel industrial growth in the area and improve
shipping.
The entire project will be completed by 2008, a year ahead of schedule, Cao
said.
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