About The Yangtze Three Gorges and Three Gorges Project
The Three Gorges is the most spectacular section of the Yangtze River, stretching some 193 km long and integrating itself with majestic Qutang Gorge, deep and quiet Wuxia Gorge, and shoal and rapid Xiling Gorge. It is suffused with so much myth, legend and glory. A natural gallery is described in such enthusiastic details. Qutang Gorge boasts the grandest landscape in the world with sheer cliffs and steep mountains on both sides of the river. Wuxia Gorge extends 53 km, winding its way through twelve peaks, veiled with clouds and mists all year around. The legend of the nymph peak adds to its beauty and grandeur of more imaginations. Xiling Gorge was full of more shoals and rapids, and concluded with the Gezhouba Dam, the first dam in the Yangtze River, which makes it more attractive.
The Three Gorges Project (TGP) is the biggest dam ever built in the world, situated at Sandouping, the middle section of Qutang Gorge, 40 km from the Gezhouba Dam. The project is composed of a dam, power plant and navigation facility. The dam is of concrete gravity type, 2309 m long, with the crest elevation of 185m a.b.s. Twenty-six generator units are located on both sides of the dam, 700 MW for each unit with the total capacity of 1820 MW. The navigation facility is composed of a permanent ship lock and a ship-lift. The ship lock is designed as a double-way and five-step locks, with each chamber dimensioned of 280´ 34´ 5m, passing which a barge fleet of 10,000t can reach Chongqing city. The ship-lift is of one-way vertical hoisting type with a container sized 120´ 18´ 3.5m. One 3,000 t passenger or cargo boat can pass through it each time. The project lasts 17 years and the construction schedule is divided into 3 periods: 1993 to 1997, 1998 to 2003 and 2004 to 2009. The main course of the Yangtze River was blocked in 1997. The first turbine generator will be put into operation by 2003, and the whole project will be...