<![CDATA[Grist - Comment Feed for China announces vague plans to mitigate environmental impacts of Three Gorges Dam]]> Grist Comment Feed en Comment #1 by mseall http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/ Mon, 26 Nov 2007 05:46:53 -0800 http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/1 Cost of clean energy

Clean energy is great. It's the way to go. But stories like this highlight the true cost. Imagine hundreds and thousands of these dams, which is what it would take to completely get rid of fossil fuels, and think about the environmental impact of that.

We need to think very carefully about how our sustainable energy plans will pan out....

http://www.talkclimatechange.com

]]> Cost of clean energy

Clean energy is great. It's the way to go. But stories like this highlight the true cost. Imagine hundreds and thousands of these dams, which is what it would take to completely get rid of fossil fuels, and think about the environmental impact of that.

We need to think very carefully about how our sustainable energy plans will pan out....

http://www.talkclimatechange.com

]]> Comment #2 by PolluteLessDotCom http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/ Mon, 26 Nov 2007 06:22:51 -0800 http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/2 Yes and No

Clean energy is the way to go if (and only if) we also reduce our overall energy consumption. Not with silly attempts and replacing light bulbs, but with really changing our habits.

A world that is run as wastefully as North Americans  have it is not sustainable for 6.5 billion people, or even just 500 million more than now. Come to think about it, it seems not sustainable with even the current numbers.

Sooner or later we will have to deal with not having a reliable supply of fossil fuels. Better be prepared and educated to tighten the belt before that happens.

As always, positively looking forward
Karsten
--
http://www.polluteless.com
Practical Advice to Pollute Less



]]> Yes and No

Clean energy is the way to go if (and only if) we also reduce our overall energy consumption. Not with silly attempts and replacing light bulbs, but with really changing our habits.

A world that is run as wastefully as North Americans  have it is not sustainable for 6.5 billion people, or even just 500 million more than now. Come to think about it, it seems not sustainable with even the current numbers.

Sooner or later we will have to deal with not having a reliable supply of fossil fuels. Better be prepared and educated to tighten the belt before that happens.

As always, positively looking forward
Karsten
--
http://www.polluteless.com
Practical Advice to Pollute Less



]]> Comment #3 by Wolverine http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/ Mon, 26 Nov 2007 11:06:37 -0800 http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/3 Dams Not Clean

There is nothing clean or sustainable about dams.  They are very ecologically destructive and the only ones on the planet who have any business building them are beavers.  The Three Gorges Dam is an ecological disaster of global proportions due to its immense size.

The only real solutions to the problems caused by human consumption of energy are 1) lowering human population, 2) lowering our energy consumption, 3) limiting energy creation to truly sustainable and clean sources, such as solar and non-bird-killing wind generators, and 4) making all energy production local.

]]> Dams Not Clean

There is nothing clean or sustainable about dams.  They are very ecologically destructive and the only ones on the planet who have any business building them are beavers.  The Three Gorges Dam is an ecological disaster of global proportions due to its immense size.

The only real solutions to the problems caused by human consumption of energy are 1) lowering human population, 2) lowering our energy consumption, 3) limiting energy creation to truly sustainable and clean sources, such as solar and non-bird-killing wind generators, and 4) making all energy production local.

]]> Comment #4 by howardgw http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/ Tue, 27 Nov 2007 01:01:58 -0800 http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/4 Three Gorges Dam

It is more likely that the increased seismicity around the Three Gorges Dam is the result of the weight of the impounded water than of seepage of water into dry rocks

]]> Three Gorges Dam

It is more likely that the increased seismicity around the Three Gorges Dam is the result of the weight of the impounded water than of seepage of water into dry rocks

]]> Comment #5 by SteveNLee http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/ Tue, 27 Nov 2007 18:21:30 -0800 http://www.grist.org/article/threeGorges/5 Dam 1, Gorges 0

I've cruised along the Yangtze and seen the dam for myself. As far as engineering feats go, yes, it's very immpressive - especially the series of enormous locks you have to go through for boats to get out of the other side. In every other respect it's a total disaster.

Millions of people are set to lose their homes.

Villages and towns have been wiped out.

Pollution levels in the Yangtze are increasing - I certainly didn't fancy a swim in it!

The Yangtze River Dolphin has been driven to extinction.

Archeological sites have been lost under the waters forever.

The tremendously beautiful gorges after which the dam is named no longer exist - the water levels are so high they are little more than mounds now instead of towering cliffs.

It's an environemental nightmare from which there is no escape. Literally. I mean, what they going to do? Poke a hole in it and let the water back out?

A total disaster.

Steve N. Lee
Author of eco-suspense thriller 'What if...?' and
free eco-guide 'An Inconvenient Doofus' available from http://www.Steve-N-Lee.com

]]> Dam 1, Gorges 0

I've cruised along the Yangtze and seen the dam for myself. As far as engineering feats go, yes, it's very immpressive - especially the series of enormous locks you have to go through for boats to get out of the other side. In every other respect it's a total disaster.

Millions of people are set to lose their homes.

Villages and towns have been wiped out.

Pollution levels in the Yangtze are increasing - I certainly didn't fancy a swim in it!

The Yangtze River Dolphin has been driven to extinction.

Archeological sites have been lost under the waters forever.

The tremendously beautiful gorges after which the dam is named no longer exist - the water levels are so high they are little more than mounds now instead of towering cliffs.

It's an environemental nightmare from which there is no escape. Literally. I mean, what they going to do? Poke a hole in it and let the water back out?

A total disaster.

Steve N. Lee
Author of eco-suspense thriller 'What if...?' and
free eco-guide 'An Inconvenient Doofus' available from http://www.Steve-N-Lee.com

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