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The Yangtze River

The Yangtze River. and The Three Gorges Dam. China. The world’s most populated country 1.3 billion people 90% live in the eastern ½ most major cities most suitable farmland One of the world’s largest economies, but most Chinese still live “modestly”. China.

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The Yangtze River

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  1. The Yangtze River and The Three Gorges Dam

  2. China • The world’s most populated country • 1.3 billion people • 90% live in the eastern ½ • most major cities • most suitable farmland • One of the world’s largest economies, but most Chinese still live “modestly”

  3. China • The government still controls much of the economy. • Since the early 1980s, the government has given some control over to individuals. • As the standard of living increases, more people want consumer goods (cars, refrigerators, tvs…)

  4. China • One of the largest producers and consumers of coal. • Coal-burning plants provided 75% of China’s electrical energy. • hydroelectric plants and oil-burning plants provide the rest

  5. China • Farming is main economic activity • more than 50% • most people live in rural villages • Only 14% of China’s land is arable. • Have managed to provide enough food for all people • droughts and floods interrupt production

  6. the Yangtze River • 3,964 miles long • looks like a dragon • aka “Chang Jiang” or long river • world’s 3rd longest river • source: Tannula Mountains of Qinghai Province • height of the mts causes rapid flow • empties in the East China Sea

  7. the Yangtze River • longest and most important in China • “lifeblood of China” • thousands live on its banks • 1/3 of China’s farms are irrigated by the river • about ½ of China’s ocean trade is carried over the Yangtze and its tributaries • important cities: Shanghai, Nanjing, Anqing, and Chongqing.

  8. the Yangtze River • Dangerous floods have killed millions, destroying villages and towns in the process. • 1931: 3.7 million died from drowning, disease or starvation • 1954: 30,000 died and 19 million became homeless • 1998: 3,000 killed

  9. Three Gorges area • said to be “the cradle of China’s 4,000 year old civilization” • records from each dynasty found in area

  10. the Three Gorges Dam • world’s most powerful dam • named for 3 gorges or steep canyons found in area • location: Hubei province (central China) • Sandouping, Yichang, Hubei Province • supposed to control floods and provide hydroelectric power • plans for a dam were thought of 100 years ago

  11. the Three Gorges Dam • Construction began in 1994. • size: 1.4 miles long and 604 feet high • will be completed in 2008 • one year ahead of schedule • costs start at $22 billion • 25,000 workers are working 24 hours per day in 3 shifts to complete it.

  12. the Three Gorges Dam • 26 turbines weighing 400 tons each will produce 18,200 megawatts of power • equal to 18 nuclear power plants • enough to light up Shanghai on a peak day with power to spare. • A 370 mile reservoir 525 feet deep will be created. • length of Lake Superior • 240,000 acres of cropland will be out of production (50% of all farming takes place in area

  13. the Three Gorges Dam

  14. http://www.threegorgesprobe.org/tgp/panos_page2.html

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