Abstract:

"It will stand 607 feet high, stretch nearly a mile and a half and be visible from space. Chinese authorities look at their epic engineering project as the concrete key to a new era for their nation, controlling devastating floods while bringing the benefits of clean, hydroelectric power and a navigable river system to one of China's most underdeveloped areas. Opponents see the Three Gorges dam as an unmitigated disaster, and not just for environmental reasons. MODERN MARVELSTM traces the background--and the controversy--surrounding the great dam, from its earliest antecedents in ancient flood control to the great modern dams that served as models for its construction. Activists speak out on its negative impact--flooding the spectacular and world-famous Three Gorges, the inundation of scores of towns and cities by the rising waters and the potential environmental damage--and their charges are answered by those who feel that the dam, despite these drawbacks, is necessary to the future of the world's most populous nation."