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WATER POLITICS

Courtesy of Tibetan Plateau, a updated map and list of hydropower projects (HPP) in the watersheds of the Drichu, Zachu and Gyalmo Ngulchu rivers:

China’s government is planning and preparing for the construction of a cascade of hydropower projects along each of the three rivers: the Salween, the Mekong and the Yangtze. Many of these projects are listed in China’s 12th Five Year Plan. In addition to mentioning the projects on the three rivers, the 12^th Five Year Plan also gives priority to projects on the upper Machu (Yellow River, 6 projects) in Qinghai to the north, and the Nyagchu (5 projects, with others already under construction) and the Gyarong Ngulchu (Dadu River, 11 projects) in Sichuan to the east. As projects in Sichuan, Qinghai and Yunnan are completed, projects in TAR, moving generally from east to west, will be developed. As these projects get developed, necessary infrastructure will be in place to develop the Brahmaputra River’s the Great Bend area. The electricity generated will be exported east to China using Ultrahigh Voltage transmission lines or used locally mainly for mining and mineral processing.