The fifth part of this series is devoted to another fete of excellent civil engineering in the 20th century.
The project was seen to many as a curse but, to others, a blessing.
The Three Gorges Dam
The Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River in China is the largest hydroelectric project on earth.
Somebody first offered plans in 1914, but revolution, wars, and political instability delayed construction until 1994. The massive project has been criticized internationally for the displacement of 1.5 million people who lived where the new lake is.
Environmental disruption has already led to the extinction of at least one species, the Baiji or Yangtze River Dolphin.
First discussed in the 1920s by Chinese Nationalist Party leaders, the idea for the Three Gorges Dam was given new impetus in 1953 when Chinese leader Mao Zedong ordered feasibility studies of several sites.
Detailed planning for the project began in 1955. Its proponents insisted it would control disastrous flooding along the Yangtze, facilitate inland trade, and provide much-needed power for central China, but the dam was not without its detractors.
Criticisms of the Three Gorges project began as soon as the plans were proposed and continued through its construction. Critical problems included the danger of dam collapse, the displacement of some 1.9 million people living in more than 1,500 cities, towns, and villages along the river, and the destruction of magnificent scenery and countless rare architectural and archaeological sites.
The pollution of the reservoir has born out fears of human and industrial waste from cities. In addition, the vast amount of water impounded in the waterbody could trigger earthquakes and landslides.
The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River by the town of Sandouping, in Yiling District, Yichang, Hubei province, central China, downstream of the Three Gorges. The Three Gorges Dam is the world's largest power station in terms of installed capacity.
Address: Zigui County, Yichang, Hubei, China
Construction began: 14 December 1994.
Construction cost: US$31.765 billion.
Detailed planning for the project began in 1955.
Responsible for Construction: The China Three Gorges Corporation
10,245,035. cubic metres of earth were shifted.
Twenty-eight million cubic metres of concrete.
463,000 metric tons of reinforcement
In 2012, all the dam's 32 turbine generator units were operating.
Project Inception to Completion took 57 years.
Height: 185 m
Length 2,335 metres
Generates 22,500 megawatts of electricity.
Purposes: Hydropower, Flood control, Tourism.