Salween River - Dams

Dams

Since the 1970s, the countries along the river, especially China, have been pressing to build a series of hydroelectric and irrigation dams on the Salween River, some of which would be among the largest in the world if constructed. The dams were proposed to generate more electricity for the growing population of China, help improve the power supply in surrounding regions of South Asia, and to divert water to irrigation in Thailand and Burma.

However, a series of problems have been associated with dams on the Salween. The Salween is one of the longest free-flowing rivers in South Asia and is one of only two major free-flowing rivers in China. The river supports thousands of species of plants and animals and is vital to the livelihoods of the many native cultures that live alongside it. It provides water for approximately 7-10 million people and supplies irrigation water to low-lying rice paddies abutting the Andaman Sea. Creating dams on the Salween would involve flooding hundreds of villages and towns and the reduced flow on the lower Salween would cause seawater to infiltrate inland, making the lower Salween valley unsuitable for growing crops. Because of poor logging practices in the upstream watershed, the historically silty Salween has become many times as turbid as its natural state. A reservoir on the Salween would fill much faster than projected, reducing the overall lifespan of dam projects. One of the largest problems is also that the dams would not have much positive impact on the people that actually live in the Salween region. There have been many public outcries to damming the Salween, ranging from petitioning to large-scale protests. There is also controversy over the representation of local opinion in the media. Investigative journalist Liu Jianqiang found little support for the dam projects among locals in China, who feared they would not get adequate compensation. The damming has even been regarded as a "military thrust against" the native people, specifically the Karen people.

In 2003, Huaneng Power International Inc. and the provincial government of Yunnan province, China, signed an agreement to build 13 dams and two reservoirs on the lower reaches of the Salween through Yunnan, some of which lie within the Three Parallel Rivers World Heritage Site. One is said to be larger than the widely controversial Three Gorges Dam. In China, the dam proposals served as a watershed movement for a bourgeoning environmental movement, which mobilized in opposition to the project. In response to protests, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao announced in February 2004 a suspension of the dam project until a full environmental review could be conducted. The Chinese Ministry of the Environment also opposes the dams. Ultimately, the Chinese government announced it would reduce the 13-dam project to 4 dams, but controversy continued. In May 2009, Wen again sought a suspension of the project pending environmental review, though one dam was already nearly complete on a tributary river. Analysts believe that the project will continue to move forward after Wen steps down in 2012.

The Thai and Burmese governments have also entertained proposals for the construction of dams on the river. On April 5, 2006 the Thai and Burma governments signed a $6 billion USD agreement to build the Ta Sang dam. Another Thai-Burma project is for the Hatgyi Dam. A feasibility survey was started in May 2006, but was abandoned until sometime in 2007, due to a military offensive by the State Peace and Development Council against Karen people in the area. The dam's builder, the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, had hoped to have the feasibility study completed by April 2006, with construction to start in November 2007. In July 2012, it was reported that the Burmese government was moving forward with construction of the Hatgyi dam.