Three Gorges Dam Accelerating Urbanization?

The controversial Three Gorges Dam project has displaced millions of people, and is about to displace millions more; but some wonder if official explanations about protecting sensitive areas and accelerating urbanization are accurate.

2 minute read

October 14, 2007, 9:00 AM PDT

By Michael Dudley


"As a trickle of environmental problems emerging from the Three Gorges dam area steadily grows into a deluge, Chinese authorities have begun weighing plans to relocate several million people to avert an ecological catastrophe.

The dam, which has created a 640 km-long reservoir on the Yangtze River, suffers from landslides, silting and erosion that could accumulate into an environmental disaster if not quickly fixed, according to experts.

[T]he government of Chongqing metropolis in the reservoir region was putting forward a blueprint, which outlines the mass relocation of 1.17 million people from the dam area.

The resettlement, which local leaders want to complete by 2020, would bring the total number of people displaced by the Three Gorges project to 5.3 million.

Instead of moving people uphill to new land, the municipality of Chongqing -- a large urban sprawl on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, is planning to absorb uprooted farmers into the city proper and transform them into city dwellers. By giving up their land rights, relocated farmers would be allowed to apply for social security of urban dwellers.

Curiously, the disclosure of the relocation plans come shortly after Chongqing municipality and Chengdu, the adjacent capital of Sichuan province, were awarded the much coveted inside the country status of a 'new special experimental zone', which allows them to benefit from central funds and preferential policies. Perhaps even more importantly in a country with scarce land resources like China, it gives them a freer hand in making decisions on land management and urban planning.

Chongqing too, needs more land and funds as it struggles to tackle the legacy of the Three Gorges Dam. The city is by some reckonings the biggest urban sprawl in the world, customarily described in China as a 'village within the city'.

But the attempt to present the new resettlement as part of an accelerated urbanisation process has made some environmental observers doubt the motives behind it."

Friday, October 12, 2007 in InterPress Service

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Aerial view of single-family homes with swimming pools in San Diego, California.

San Diego to Rescind Multi-Unit ADU Rule

The city wants to close a loophole that allowed developers to build apartment buildings on single-family lots as ADUs.

March 9, 2025 - Axios

Canadian flag in foreground with blurred Canadian Parliament building in background in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Has President Trump Met His Match?

Doug Ford, the no-nonsense premier of Canada's most populous province, Ontario, is taking on Trump where it hurts — making American energy more expensive.

March 11, 2025 - Toronto Star

Close-up of green ULEZ sign in London, UK.

Study: London ULEZ Rapidly Cleaning up Air Pollution

Expanding the city’s ultra low-emission zone has resulted in dramatic drops in particle emissions in inner and outer London.

March 10, 2025 - Smart Cities World

Tents set up by unhoused people under freeway overpass in San Jose, California with American flag above them.

San Jose Mayor Takes Dual Approach to Unsheltered Homeless Population

In a commentary published in The Mercury News, Mayor Matt Mahan describes a shelter and law enforcement approach to ending targeted homeless encampments within Northern California's largest city.

March 14 - The Mercury News

Blue Atlanta streetcar on street in downtown Atlanta, Georgia.

Atlanta Changes Beltline Rail Plan

City officials say they are committed to building rail connections, but are nixing a prior plan to extend the streetcar network.

March 14 - Saporta Report

New York City city hall building.

Are Black Mayors Being Pushed Out of Office?

The mayors of New York, St. Louis, and Pittsburgh all stand to lose their seats in the coming weeks. They also all happen to be Black.

March 14 - Governing

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.