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The Thirsty Dragon: The Dams of Chongqing
April 3rd, 2012
Courtesy of Foreign Policy, a look at China’s plans to build more dams along the Yangtze: Mapmakers and geologists divide the Yangtze River, the third largest in the world, into three sections: China’s mighty “Mother River” begins in the Tibetan plateau, slowly gathering strength as it meanders through a relatively barren expanse of rock and […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Behind Myanmar’s Suspended Dam (3)
March 29th, 2012
Courtesy of China Dialogue, part three of the series on the Myitsone dam: Members of the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) and many other Kachins – including former communists – are confused or angry about China’s role in the region’s history. The Myitsone dam is just a flashpoint for those feelings. The sentiment I heard repeatedly […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Behind Myanmar’s Suspended Dam (2)
March 29th, 2012
Courtesy of China Dialogue, further reporting on the background to Myanmar’s recent decision to shelve a China-funded hydropower plant on the Irrawaddy River. As the article notes: Everything I heard in Myanmar pointed to a failure to consult as the key issue in the furore surrounding the Myitsone dam. As Brother Kunsang of the Kachin […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Behind Myanmar’s Suspended Dam (1)
March 27th, 2012
Via China Dialogue, the first installment of a report on the background to Myanmar’s recent decision to shelve a China-funded hydropower plant on the Irrawaddy River. As the article notes: On a recent trip to Myanmar – also known as Burma – my eyes were opened to the strength of opposition to the Myitsone dam, […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Chinese Dam Building Tests Southeast Asian Resilience
March 21st, 2012
Courtesy of HydroLogic, a look at how China’s hydropower development activities on the Mekong and Salween Rivers are a clear illustration of the country’s potentially destabilizing strategy, with both diplomatic and environmental impacts, in Southeast Asia. As the article notes: “…These waterways, along with the Yangtze River (one of China’s domestic targets for intensive development), […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: Hydropower In China
March 21st, 2012
Courtesy of Circle of Blue, a look at how China, the world’s largest energy consumer, is pushing its renewable energy agenda by investing in hydropower. By 2015, the Chinese government expects that the country’s hydropower installed capacity will amount to 300 million kilowatts, thus reducing the nation’s reliance on fossil fuels. The following dams are […]
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