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China has approved the construction of what will be the world's largest hydroelectric dam, stoking concerns about the displacement of communities in Tibet and downstream environmental impacts in India and Bangladesh.
The dam, which will be located in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo River, could generate three times more power than the Three Gorges Dam, currently the world's largest hydroelectric plant.
Chinese state media described the project as “a safe project that prioritizes ecological protection”, saying it will boost local prosperity and contribute to Beijing's climate neutrality goals.
Human rights groups and experts, however, have expressed concerns about the knock-on effects of this development.
Among them are fears that the construction of the dam – first announced in late 2020 – could displace local communities, significantly alter the natural landscape and damage local ecosystems, which are among the richest and most diverse on the Tibetan Plateau.
Reports indicate that the colossal development would require drilling at least four 20km-long tunnels through the Namcha Barwa mountain, thereby diverting the flow of the Yarlung Tsangpo, Tibet's longest river.
Chinese authorities have stressed that the project would not have a major environmental impact, but have not said how many people it would displace. The Three Gorges hydroelectric dam required the resettlement of 1.4 million people.
Experts and officials have also raised concerns that the dam would allow China to control or divert the flow of the cross-border river, which flows south into the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh and India. 'Assam, then to Bangladesh.
A 2013 report by the Lowy Institute, an Australia-based think tank, noted that “control of these rivers (in the Tibetan Plateau) effectively gives China a stranglehold on the Indian economy.”
Shortly after China announced plans for the Yarlung Tsangpo Dam project in 2020, a senior Indian government official told Reuters that the Indian government was studying the development of a large hydroelectric dam and reservoir “to mitigate the negative impact of Chinese dam projects”.
China's Foreign Ministry has previously responded to India's concerns over the proposed dam, saying in 2020 that China had a “legitimate right” to build a dam on the river and had considered downstream impacts.
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The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon, also known as the Yarlung Zangbo Grand Canyon, is the deepest in the world.
China has built several hydroelectric plants along the course of the Yarlung Tsangpo over the past decade in an effort to harness the river's power as a renewable energy source. Running through the deepest canyon on the planet, a section of the river drops 2,000 meters in a short distance of just 50 km, offering enormous potential for hydroelectricity generation.
However, the river's dramatic topography also poses major engineering challenges – and this latest dam is by far China's largest and most ambitious to date.
The development site is located along an earthquake-prone tectonic plate boundary. Chinese researchers also raised concerns that such extensive excavation and construction in the steep and narrow gorge would increase the frequency of landslides.
“Landslides and mudslides caused by earthquakes are often uncontrollable and will also pose a huge threat to the project,” said a senior engineer from the Sichuan provincial geological bureau in 2022.
The project could cost up to a trillion yuan ($127 billion; £109.3 billion) according to estimates by the Chongyi Water Resources Bureau.
