Three Gorges Dam Research Paper

Stretching a total of about 3,964 miles, the Yangtze River has played a considerable role in the lives of Chinese citizens for thousands of years. Along with serving as a major form of water transportation and trading, Asia’s longest river is considered a key role in China’s agriculture and economic system. Where the river runs through Sandouping, one would find the Three Gorges Dam—the largest, and possibly the most infamous, dam in the world. Even though the Chinese government had intentions of using the dam to control flooding and generate power, the Three Gorges Dam has proven itself to be an environmental catastrophe for the Chinese. Even before the Three Gorges Dam was built, the Yangtze River was still considered to be a “polluted river.” However, the construction of the dam worsened the issue to far more serious measures. For instance, since the placement of the Three Gorges Dam, eutrophication—the process by which nutrients, such as nitrogen, are …show more content…
did, China can also reduce the amount of nitrogen in the Yangtze river by planting shrubs and plants along it, carefully managing nutrients, and using a more appropriate amount of fertilizers and pesticides . Having an assortment of plants on the sides of the Yangtze will help stop any water containing pollutants, like nitrates, from flowing into the river; thus reducing eutrophication. As for nutrient managing, if farmers were to carefully “map out” a close approximation of how many nutrients they would need in order for their farm to prosper, then there would not be a large excess of nutrients going into the Yangtze River. Fertilizers and pesticides also play a role in the eutrophication of the Yangtze River. If the over-application of a fertilizer or pesticide occurs, then the plant will not fully be able to absorb either of them, meaning that the chemicals in the fertilizers and pesticides, many of which contain large amounts of nitrate, will enter the