Radio Free Asia reports that some Tibetans have been arrested in Shigatse protesting against an increasing number of Chinese miners in the region. See this link for a Tibetan language radio report and some pictures:རྣམ་གླིང་དུ་གཏེར་ཁ་བསྔོག་འདོན་ལ་ངོ་རྒོལ།
[end]
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Times of India: Response from Chinese official
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
The Times of India has published an article in response to the recent article by the Guardian about hydropower projects in Tibet. The Guardian's article is based on my last blog post. The Times of India has interviewed a Chinese official, Ma Jiali, with the goverment-run Institute of Contemporary International Relations to respond to a claim (which I also made) that China is likely to build a massive 38 gigawatt hydropower project at the Great Bend of Yarlung Tsangpo-Brahmaputra river.
It is a privilege to have one's work discussed in major newspapers like the Guardian, Times of India and the Hindustan Times! Thanks to the reporters who did the stories to bring much needed attention to this important matter.
I wanted to write directly to Times of India with a response to Mr. Ma Jiali's comments but surprisingly I couldn't find a "Contact" link/info on their website! So here is a blog post instead.
Mr. Jiali's response: "There are some people in China including hydrological engineers and retired military officers pushing the government to build a major water project on the Brahmaputra in Tibet. But the Chinese government has no such plans. [...] Some people including retired military officers have been advocating such a project for a long time. But I can tell you there is no such plans in the government."
Yes, we knew that. However, it must be clarified that there are two components to the "major water project" discussed here: one is hydro-power project and the other is a connected water diversion project to China. My claim is that the hydropower project is likely to be built but the water diversion project is not very likely. Read my last blog post for more details.
Mr. Jiali continues: "All that the government wants to do is establish small hydro-electricity projects in a way that there is no environmental damage. It will be bad for China as well because such a project can cause serious damage to environment in the sensitive mountain areas. Also, where is the market for generating so much electricity in Tibet?" And Times of India adds, "A major project would not be economically viable."
Now this is not true and is very misleading. The Tibetan Plateau blog has identified at least 16 hydro-electricity projects on the Yarlung Tsangpo and its tributaries that can generate more power than the largest hydropower project currently operating in Tibet Autonomous Region, the 100 MWZhikong project near Meldro Gungkar (མལ་གྲོ་གུང་དཀར་).
Certainly there is no domestic demand for so much energy, except to power government's extensive plans to develop the region and to extract gold, copper and other minerals. The greatest demand for energy actually comes from Chinese cities. A senior researcher like Mr. Jiali cannot be ignorant of China's "West to East Power Transmission Project." Here is the State Grid map again, which shows Metog (Motuo) hydropower project connected to ultra-high voltage power transmission lines of China.
Read more on this article...
It is a privilege to have one's work discussed in major newspapers like the Guardian, Times of India and the Hindustan Times! Thanks to the reporters who did the stories to bring much needed attention to this important matter.
I wanted to write directly to Times of India with a response to Mr. Ma Jiali's comments but surprisingly I couldn't find a "Contact" link/info on their website! So here is a blog post instead.
Mr. Jiali's response: "There are some people in China including hydrological engineers and retired military officers pushing the government to build a major water project on the Brahmaputra in Tibet. But the Chinese government has no such plans. [...] Some people including retired military officers have been advocating such a project for a long time. But I can tell you there is no such plans in the government."
Yes, we knew that. However, it must be clarified that there are two components to the "major water project" discussed here: one is hydro-power project and the other is a connected water diversion project to China. My claim is that the hydropower project is likely to be built but the water diversion project is not very likely. Read my last blog post for more details.
Mr. Jiali continues: "All that the government wants to do is establish small hydro-electricity projects in a way that there is no environmental damage. It will be bad for China as well because such a project can cause serious damage to environment in the sensitive mountain areas. Also, where is the market for generating so much electricity in Tibet?" And Times of India adds, "A major project would not be economically viable."
Now this is not true and is very misleading. The Tibetan Plateau blog has identified at least 16 hydro-electricity projects on the Yarlung Tsangpo and its tributaries that can generate more power than the largest hydropower project currently operating in Tibet Autonomous Region, the 100 MWZhikong project near Meldro Gungkar (མལ་གྲོ་གུང་དཀར་).
Certainly there is no domestic demand for so much energy, except to power government's extensive plans to develop the region and to extract gold, copper and other minerals. The greatest demand for energy actually comes from Chinese cities. A senior researcher like Mr. Jiali cannot be ignorant of China's "West to East Power Transmission Project." Here is the State Grid map again, which shows Metog (Motuo) hydropower project connected to ultra-high voltage power transmission lines of China.
Read more on this article...
Damming Tibet's Yarlung Tsangpo-Brahmaputra and other South Asian rivers
Monday, May 24, 2010
The Tibetan Plateau blog presents a preliminary map of hydropower projects on the upper reaches of the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra (ཡར་ཀླུངས་གཙང་པོ༑) River in Tibet. It is hoped that this map will contribute new information to recent international discussions and clarify some of the misunderstandings about Chinese water control projects on the river.
Click on images for full size view
The map also shows hydropower projects (HPP) on the upper reaches of several other international rivers in South Asia, namely the Indus (Senge Khabab), Sutlej (Langchen Khabab), Karnali (Mabcha Khaba), Arun (Bumchu) and Subansiri (Loro Chu/ལོ་རོ་ཆུ་, alternative name: Jya Chu/བྱ་ཆུ་) rivers. This is the final map in a series that shows hydropower projects on the Tibetan Plateau.** Previous maps include those on the upper reaches of the Salween, Mekong and Yangtze rivers; the Yellow River; the Nyagchu or Yalong River; as well as the eastern edges of the Tibetan Plateau. As always, corrections as well as additions to any of these maps are most appreciated.
The status of dams on the upper reaches of Yarlung Tsangpo-Brahmaputra shows that there are 10 dams completed, three under construction, seven under active consideration and eight more proposed. There is one hydropower project completed, each, on the Senge Khabab (Indus), Langchen Khabab (Sutlej) and Mabcha Khabab (Karnali) rivers. Five large dams are proposed on the Bumchu (Arun) River and another large dam proposed on Loro Chu (Subansiri).
While the larger hydropower projects and a few of the smaller projects have been indicated, there are many small hydropower projects in the region, disconnected from any large power grids. Many Tibetans have until recently lived without electricity, and many still do. There is a pattern by which dams and power transmission lines are built on the Tibetan Plateau -- smaller and middle sized dams are built first, to provide a basis for the construction of larger ones to follow. The current push to provide Tibetans with electrical power seems primarily motivated by the need for larger HPPs to power resource extraction, infrastructure development, and ultimately for supply to coastal Chinese cities where demands are the highest.
A note on Tibetan and Chinese names on the maps: The maps show Tibetan names of places, rivers, mountains and lakes. However, HPPs are indicated with their Chinese names unless they are not known. The Chinese names are used mainly because these are Chinese projects better known with their own project names and also because it is easier to locate (less confusing) for researchers.
YARLUNG TSANGPO-BRAHMAPUTRA
The Tsangpo-Brahmaputra is a major international river shared between Tibet/China, India and Bangladesh. On the Tibetan Plateau, the river flows west to east, across Southern Tibet, from its sources near the sacred Mt. Kailash (གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ༑) all the way to the Great Bend, where the river turns north to take a sharp U-turn to flow south into India and then to Bangladesh. Hydrologically, this river is connected to the larger Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna basin.
Until recently, the Yarlung Tsangpo was considered as an undammed river. China has officially announced plans to build five dams on the middle section of the river, including the Zangmu project currently under construction, which has caused much concern in India. The absence in these debates of the voices of Tibetans who live in the valley and are traditional users of its waters in these debates is deplorable, especially given their historical, religious and economic connections to the river.
The Yarlung Tsangpo River is intimately linked to the history of Tibetan civilization, indigenous religious beliefs and practices, and ultimately to the Tibetan identity. As the River Nile is to Egypt, Yarlung Tsangpo can be considered the cradle of Tibetan civilization. The Yarlung Valley is the home of the earliest Tibetan kings known as the Yarlung Dynasty. From its sources near the sacred Mt. Kailash, the Yarlung Tsangpo valley is dotted with pilgrimage sites and power-places such as meditation caves of past masters and beyul (་"hidden valleys") for spiritual practices. The river is also shown in paintings of the famous imagery of Tibet as a supine demoness (སྲིན་མོ་གན་རྐྱལ༑).
THE TSANGPO GORGE: THE SACRED LAND OF PEMA KOE
The Great Bend of the Yarlung Tsangpo, also known as the Tsangpo Gorge, has attracted significant international attention as the "Last Secret Place on Earth" and for having the greatest hydropower potential of any site in the world. Through the 19th century, cartographers were not certain whether the Yarlung Tsangpo emerged from the other side of the Gorge as the Brahmaputra, the Irrawaddy, or some other river. Just downstream of Lungpe (ལུང་དཔེ་), the Yarlung Tsangpo enters one of the world's deepest and largest gorges, starting from a 4,900-meter cleft between two of the highest mountains in Eastern Himalaya: 7756 meters high Namchak Barwa and 7294 meters tall Gyala Pelri. As the river drops nearly 2500 meters in altitude through the length of the bend, the gorge is considered ideal for hydropower generation. Speculation about the construction of the world's most powerful dam and a major water diversion project at this site (discussed below) has been a major cause of concern in downstream countries.
The Great Bend of the Yarlung Tsangpo River is also known as one of the most bio-diverse regions in the world in terms of plant species. Although it is hard to imagine how botanists studied and added up the numbers of different plant species in this hard-to-travel corner, this official site boasts the existence of 3,700 plant species and emphasizes "the primordial nature of the plants" in the region. The ecological integrity of the Great Bend area is critical for the conservation of the Himalayas as one the world's richest but at greatest-risk areas for biodiversity (hotspot).
To the Tibetans, the Great Bend region is known as Pema Koe, the most sacred beyul blessed by Guru Rinpoche, Padmasambhava, the Indian Buddhist yogin credited with firmly establishing Buddhism in Tibet. Generations of visionary Tibetan Buddhist masters have revealed "hidden treasures" (གཏེར་མ་) and made journeys through the different layers of spiritual doors of beyul Pema Koe. Tibetans also consider the region as the home of the Goddess Dorje Phakmo (Vajra Yogini).
Similar to the Tibet map depicted as a demoness lying on her back, this local trekking group describes the sacred geography of the Pema Koe region as mapped onto the body of the goddess Dorje Phakmo herself: "Her head is the Kangri Kangpo [White Snow Mountain], her two breasts [are] Namche Barwa and Gyala Peri [mountains] respectively. The lower part of her body lies in Yangsang or the innermost Pemako which is the upper Siang region of Arunachal Pradesh. In the confluence of Siang (Tsangpo) and Yangsang is the sacred tri[a]ngle Kila Yangzom the vulva of Goddess Dorje Phagmo." These beliefs and pilgrimage practices have religious and cultural significance for millions of Buddhists around the world.
The Great Bend of the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra. Photo courtesy of Christoph Hormann of www.imagico.de
HYDROPOWER PLANS AT THE GREAT BEND OF THE YARLUNG TSANGPO-BRAHMAPUTRA
The map shows two different proposals to harness the hydroelectric potential of the Great Bend: Motuo and Daduqia. The tunnels for Motuo project starts at Lungpe and ends at Metog (མེ་ཏོག༑). Daduqia starts near Pe (ཕད་) and ends at Digdong (སྡིག་གདོང་) near the Indian border. Of these two projects, China is likely to build the 38,000 MW hydropower station near Metog called Motuo in Chinese. This project is feasible from an economic and engineering perspective, although there will be major environmental and seismic issues involved due to the size of the reservoir if the Chinese government decides to build a large dam at the lower end of the tunnels. The status of the project shown as under active consideration is based on informed assessments and evidence. The project is likely to be built after related infrastructure of nearby dams to supply power for its construction and ultra-high voltage power transmission lines are completed. Although the July 2003 Xinhua reports of preliminary studies conducted in the region are not available online anymore, there are several evidences online including discussions of the project on official, academic and other professional websites. The following annotated map of the State Grid Corporation of China envisions the Motuo project connected to ultra high voltage lines of China.
Any tunnels associated with hydropower projects would be approximately 15 - 25 km long, of similar length to those currently being constructed for the Jinping II project on the Nyagchu. These proposed tunnels would likely be attached to large pipes on the downstream side to convey the water through a number of generators before reaching the lower leg of the bend. At this point it is likely that there would also be a large dam (Motuo) in the Grand Canyon of the bend. An alternative proposal, shown on the map as "Daduqia", avoids large dams altogether and takes full advantage of the 2400m drop in altitude, but it is near the border with India and would be highly exposed if there were another conflict. The details of the tunnel routes as presented on the map are inferred but are presented with high confidence based on the assumption that China's engineers have sought to optimize the return on the project.
The greatest risk to a large dam at the Great Bend comes from seismic activity. The Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau were formed by the collision of techtonic plates. As such, earthquakes are not uncommon in Tibet. Metog County, where Motuo reservoir is likely to be built, had a "moderate" earthquake in 2008 before the disastrous Sichuan Earthquake that killed over 90,000 people. The recent earthquake in Yushu and the cracking of Thrangu dam is a nerve-wracking example for people living downstream in India and Bangladesh, given the proximity of the Great Bend to India. Chinese government seismologist Fan Xiao has suggested that man-made activity such as the weight of a large artificial lake near fault-lines can trigger earthquakes.
WATER DIVERSION FROM THE TSANGPO-BRAHMAPUTRA RIVER
Several ideas have been proposed to divert water from a giant dam at the Great Bend, through hundreds of kilometers of long canals, to the Yellow River, the Yangtze River, or even the Gobi Desert. Two individuals are key sources of these ideas: Guo Kai, a retired Chinese People's Liberation Army general, whose ideas were published in a book titled "How Tibet's Water Can Save China" by Li Ling (published December 2005), and the late Mr. Masaki Nakajima, "founder and special advisor to the Mitsubishi Research Institute of Japan," who first proposed a $500 billion project to the Global Environmental Fund in 1977 (See, Verghese in "Waters of Hope", 1990, pp. 188-189). These proposals are not shown on the map because there is no evidence of government interest and also because these ideas do not make practical or economic sense.
While Masaki Nakajima and Guo Kai were the two main sources of speculation, there are actually many different proposals for diverting water from the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra. The only project that had "official" interest at one time envisioned diverting water from near Tsethang, in the mid-reaches of the river at about 3500m, and directing it through a tunnel into the Nyang valley, and from there eventually to the Yellow River. It would rely on both gravity and power generated by a HPP on the Great Bend to move the water to the intended location. This project has been officially dismissed. There are other "unofficial" proposals, including connecting different rivers of Tibet as if these were streets that can run in all directions.
Close study of the terrain around the Great Bend area and possible canal routes on Google Earth show that the laws of physics will not allow water diversion from the Great Bend as suggested. For example, a reservoir like Motuo (850 m altitude) which is ideal for taking advantage of the drop in the Great Bend altitude would have lost 2000 meters of height that must be transferred over corrugated mountain ranges--through canals that are hundreds of kilometers long. Some may stubbornly argue that it is possible to divert the water with the combined power supplied by the dams at Motuo and Yiwong-Parlung rivers and with "peaceful nuclear explosions" to bore tunnels in the mountains. Even if these were possible, the immense costs do not make sense given the fact that water can be diverted from other rivers more easily and the key attraction for power generation at the Great Bend is economic development, not pumping water. Another major issue is the climate of the Tibetan Plateau, where it is below freezing point during winters and during early spring when water demand is highest in North China.
The Mid-Reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo
This is where major development is currently taking place. The 510MW Zangmu (རྫམ་ or Zam) is under construction and three other projects, Lengda (གླིང་མདའ་ or Lingda), Zhongda (སྒྲོམ་མདའ་ or Zhomda), and Langzhen have begun site preparation. Construction could begin within a few years. Development of Jiacha (རྒྱ་ཚ་ or Gyatsa) is also expected soon. It appears Jiexu will be developed last. As this is the upstream dam in this cascade of six projects, and the last to be developed, this may have a large reservoir to assure a constant flow for the downstream dams.
Here is an annotated high-resolution image of Zangmu project under progress from GeoEye that is annotated by one of Tibetan Plateau blog's consultants. Tibetan Plateau blog is responsible for the annotation.
The Yiwong and Parlung Rivers
Site planning is currently under way on these tributaries of the Yarlung Tsangpo. Completion of projects on these rivers is likely required for development of the Motuo HPP. The sites indicated are based on a map on Hydrochina's website. As the characters of the names of most of the projects shown were unintelligibly small and vague on the Hydrochina map they have been assigned the Tibetan names of nearby towns, which are approximate sites of future developments.
**The Tibetan Plateau blog is grateful to many individuals and organizations for their support and guidance in making this series of maps possible for publication. Organizations include International Rivers, Probe International and the University of British Columbia. People include friends and experts living/working in Tibet and China, Kevin Li, Bruce Lee, James Trevor, Stone Routes, Dorothy Berger and most of all to M, who did most of the laborious work behind these maps. Thank you all!
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Click on images for full size view
The map also shows hydropower projects (HPP) on the upper reaches of several other international rivers in South Asia, namely the Indus (Senge Khabab), Sutlej (Langchen Khabab), Karnali (Mabcha Khaba), Arun (Bumchu) and Subansiri (Loro Chu/ལོ་རོ་ཆུ་, alternative name: Jya Chu/བྱ་ཆུ་) rivers. This is the final map in a series that shows hydropower projects on the Tibetan Plateau.** Previous maps include those on the upper reaches of the Salween, Mekong and Yangtze rivers; the Yellow River; the Nyagchu or Yalong River; as well as the eastern edges of the Tibetan Plateau. As always, corrections as well as additions to any of these maps are most appreciated.
The status of dams on the upper reaches of Yarlung Tsangpo-Brahmaputra shows that there are 10 dams completed, three under construction, seven under active consideration and eight more proposed. There is one hydropower project completed, each, on the Senge Khabab (Indus), Langchen Khabab (Sutlej) and Mabcha Khabab (Karnali) rivers. Five large dams are proposed on the Bumchu (Arun) River and another large dam proposed on Loro Chu (Subansiri).
While the larger hydropower projects and a few of the smaller projects have been indicated, there are many small hydropower projects in the region, disconnected from any large power grids. Many Tibetans have until recently lived without electricity, and many still do. There is a pattern by which dams and power transmission lines are built on the Tibetan Plateau -- smaller and middle sized dams are built first, to provide a basis for the construction of larger ones to follow. The current push to provide Tibetans with electrical power seems primarily motivated by the need for larger HPPs to power resource extraction, infrastructure development, and ultimately for supply to coastal Chinese cities where demands are the highest.
A note on Tibetan and Chinese names on the maps: The maps show Tibetan names of places, rivers, mountains and lakes. However, HPPs are indicated with their Chinese names unless they are not known. The Chinese names are used mainly because these are Chinese projects better known with their own project names and also because it is easier to locate (less confusing) for researchers.
YARLUNG TSANGPO-BRAHMAPUTRA
The Tsangpo-Brahmaputra is a major international river shared between Tibet/China, India and Bangladesh. On the Tibetan Plateau, the river flows west to east, across Southern Tibet, from its sources near the sacred Mt. Kailash (གངས་རིན་པོ་ཆེ༑) all the way to the Great Bend, where the river turns north to take a sharp U-turn to flow south into India and then to Bangladesh. Hydrologically, this river is connected to the larger Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna basin.
Until recently, the Yarlung Tsangpo was considered as an undammed river. China has officially announced plans to build five dams on the middle section of the river, including the Zangmu project currently under construction, which has caused much concern in India. The absence in these debates of the voices of Tibetans who live in the valley and are traditional users of its waters in these debates is deplorable, especially given their historical, religious and economic connections to the river.
The Yarlung Tsangpo River is intimately linked to the history of Tibetan civilization, indigenous religious beliefs and practices, and ultimately to the Tibetan identity. As the River Nile is to Egypt, Yarlung Tsangpo can be considered the cradle of Tibetan civilization. The Yarlung Valley is the home of the earliest Tibetan kings known as the Yarlung Dynasty. From its sources near the sacred Mt. Kailash, the Yarlung Tsangpo valley is dotted with pilgrimage sites and power-places such as meditation caves of past masters and beyul (་"hidden valleys") for spiritual practices. The river is also shown in paintings of the famous imagery of Tibet as a supine demoness (སྲིན་མོ་གན་རྐྱལ༑).
THE TSANGPO GORGE: THE SACRED LAND OF PEMA KOE
The Great Bend of the Yarlung Tsangpo, also known as the Tsangpo Gorge, has attracted significant international attention as the "Last Secret Place on Earth" and for having the greatest hydropower potential of any site in the world. Through the 19th century, cartographers were not certain whether the Yarlung Tsangpo emerged from the other side of the Gorge as the Brahmaputra, the Irrawaddy, or some other river. Just downstream of Lungpe (ལུང་དཔེ་), the Yarlung Tsangpo enters one of the world's deepest and largest gorges, starting from a 4,900-meter cleft between two of the highest mountains in Eastern Himalaya: 7756 meters high Namchak Barwa and 7294 meters tall Gyala Pelri. As the river drops nearly 2500 meters in altitude through the length of the bend, the gorge is considered ideal for hydropower generation. Speculation about the construction of the world's most powerful dam and a major water diversion project at this site (discussed below) has been a major cause of concern in downstream countries.
The Great Bend of the Yarlung Tsangpo River is also known as one of the most bio-diverse regions in the world in terms of plant species. Although it is hard to imagine how botanists studied and added up the numbers of different plant species in this hard-to-travel corner, this official site boasts the existence of 3,700 plant species and emphasizes "the primordial nature of the plants" in the region. The ecological integrity of the Great Bend area is critical for the conservation of the Himalayas as one the world's richest but at greatest-risk areas for biodiversity (hotspot).
To the Tibetans, the Great Bend region is known as Pema Koe, the most sacred beyul blessed by Guru Rinpoche, Padmasambhava, the Indian Buddhist yogin credited with firmly establishing Buddhism in Tibet. Generations of visionary Tibetan Buddhist masters have revealed "hidden treasures" (གཏེར་མ་) and made journeys through the different layers of spiritual doors of beyul Pema Koe. Tibetans also consider the region as the home of the Goddess Dorje Phakmo (Vajra Yogini).
Similar to the Tibet map depicted as a demoness lying on her back, this local trekking group describes the sacred geography of the Pema Koe region as mapped onto the body of the goddess Dorje Phakmo herself: "Her head is the Kangri Kangpo [White Snow Mountain], her two breasts [are] Namche Barwa and Gyala Peri [mountains] respectively. The lower part of her body lies in Yangsang or the innermost Pemako which is the upper Siang region of Arunachal Pradesh. In the confluence of Siang (Tsangpo) and Yangsang is the sacred tri[a]ngle Kila Yangzom the vulva of Goddess Dorje Phagmo." These beliefs and pilgrimage practices have religious and cultural significance for millions of Buddhists around the world.
The Great Bend of the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra. Photo courtesy of Christoph Hormann of www.imagico.de
HYDROPOWER PLANS AT THE GREAT BEND OF THE YARLUNG TSANGPO-BRAHMAPUTRA
The map shows two different proposals to harness the hydroelectric potential of the Great Bend: Motuo and Daduqia. The tunnels for Motuo project starts at Lungpe and ends at Metog (མེ་ཏོག༑). Daduqia starts near Pe (ཕད་) and ends at Digdong (སྡིག་གདོང་) near the Indian border. Of these two projects, China is likely to build the 38,000 MW hydropower station near Metog called Motuo in Chinese. This project is feasible from an economic and engineering perspective, although there will be major environmental and seismic issues involved due to the size of the reservoir if the Chinese government decides to build a large dam at the lower end of the tunnels. The status of the project shown as under active consideration is based on informed assessments and evidence. The project is likely to be built after related infrastructure of nearby dams to supply power for its construction and ultra-high voltage power transmission lines are completed. Although the July 2003 Xinhua reports of preliminary studies conducted in the region are not available online anymore, there are several evidences online including discussions of the project on official, academic and other professional websites. The following annotated map of the State Grid Corporation of China envisions the Motuo project connected to ultra high voltage lines of China.
Any tunnels associated with hydropower projects would be approximately 15 - 25 km long, of similar length to those currently being constructed for the Jinping II project on the Nyagchu. These proposed tunnels would likely be attached to large pipes on the downstream side to convey the water through a number of generators before reaching the lower leg of the bend. At this point it is likely that there would also be a large dam (Motuo) in the Grand Canyon of the bend. An alternative proposal, shown on the map as "Daduqia", avoids large dams altogether and takes full advantage of the 2400m drop in altitude, but it is near the border with India and would be highly exposed if there were another conflict. The details of the tunnel routes as presented on the map are inferred but are presented with high confidence based on the assumption that China's engineers have sought to optimize the return on the project.
The greatest risk to a large dam at the Great Bend comes from seismic activity. The Himalayas and the Tibetan Plateau were formed by the collision of techtonic plates. As such, earthquakes are not uncommon in Tibet. Metog County, where Motuo reservoir is likely to be built, had a "moderate" earthquake in 2008 before the disastrous Sichuan Earthquake that killed over 90,000 people. The recent earthquake in Yushu and the cracking of Thrangu dam is a nerve-wracking example for people living downstream in India and Bangladesh, given the proximity of the Great Bend to India. Chinese government seismologist Fan Xiao has suggested that man-made activity such as the weight of a large artificial lake near fault-lines can trigger earthquakes.
WATER DIVERSION FROM THE TSANGPO-BRAHMAPUTRA RIVER
Several ideas have been proposed to divert water from a giant dam at the Great Bend, through hundreds of kilometers of long canals, to the Yellow River, the Yangtze River, or even the Gobi Desert. Two individuals are key sources of these ideas: Guo Kai, a retired Chinese People's Liberation Army general, whose ideas were published in a book titled "How Tibet's Water Can Save China" by Li Ling (published December 2005), and the late Mr. Masaki Nakajima, "founder and special advisor to the Mitsubishi Research Institute of Japan," who first proposed a $500 billion project to the Global Environmental Fund in 1977 (See, Verghese in "Waters of Hope", 1990, pp. 188-189). These proposals are not shown on the map because there is no evidence of government interest and also because these ideas do not make practical or economic sense.
While Masaki Nakajima and Guo Kai were the two main sources of speculation, there are actually many different proposals for diverting water from the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra. The only project that had "official" interest at one time envisioned diverting water from near Tsethang, in the mid-reaches of the river at about 3500m, and directing it through a tunnel into the Nyang valley, and from there eventually to the Yellow River. It would rely on both gravity and power generated by a HPP on the Great Bend to move the water to the intended location. This project has been officially dismissed. There are other "unofficial" proposals, including connecting different rivers of Tibet as if these were streets that can run in all directions.
Close study of the terrain around the Great Bend area and possible canal routes on Google Earth show that the laws of physics will not allow water diversion from the Great Bend as suggested. For example, a reservoir like Motuo (850 m altitude) which is ideal for taking advantage of the drop in the Great Bend altitude would have lost 2000 meters of height that must be transferred over corrugated mountain ranges--through canals that are hundreds of kilometers long. Some may stubbornly argue that it is possible to divert the water with the combined power supplied by the dams at Motuo and Yiwong-Parlung rivers and with "peaceful nuclear explosions" to bore tunnels in the mountains. Even if these were possible, the immense costs do not make sense given the fact that water can be diverted from other rivers more easily and the key attraction for power generation at the Great Bend is economic development, not pumping water. Another major issue is the climate of the Tibetan Plateau, where it is below freezing point during winters and during early spring when water demand is highest in North China.
The Mid-Reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo
This is where major development is currently taking place. The 510MW Zangmu (རྫམ་ or Zam) is under construction and three other projects, Lengda (གླིང་མདའ་ or Lingda), Zhongda (སྒྲོམ་མདའ་ or Zhomda), and Langzhen have begun site preparation. Construction could begin within a few years. Development of Jiacha (རྒྱ་ཚ་ or Gyatsa) is also expected soon. It appears Jiexu will be developed last. As this is the upstream dam in this cascade of six projects, and the last to be developed, this may have a large reservoir to assure a constant flow for the downstream dams.
Here is an annotated high-resolution image of Zangmu project under progress from GeoEye that is annotated by one of Tibetan Plateau blog's consultants. Tibetan Plateau blog is responsible for the annotation.
The Yiwong and Parlung Rivers
Site planning is currently under way on these tributaries of the Yarlung Tsangpo. Completion of projects on these rivers is likely required for development of the Motuo HPP. The sites indicated are based on a map on Hydrochina's website. As the characters of the names of most of the projects shown were unintelligibly small and vague on the Hydrochina map they have been assigned the Tibetan names of nearby towns, which are approximate sites of future developments.
**The Tibetan Plateau blog is grateful to many individuals and organizations for their support and guidance in making this series of maps possible for publication. Organizations include International Rivers, Probe International and the University of British Columbia. People include friends and experts living/working in Tibet and China, Kevin Li, Bruce Lee, James Trevor, Stone Routes, Dorothy Berger and most of all to M, who did most of the laborious work behind these maps. Thank you all!
Read more on this article...
Tibetan girl band Acha and Jackie Chan sing for the environment
Sunday, May 9, 2010
The popular Tibetan girl band, Acha or Ajia, has posted an interesting music video on their blog. The song has mixed themes of animal rights, environment and peace. The video also shows Jackie Chan dressed as a Tibetan and singing glu (གླུ་) with both hands around his mouth as if shouting to someone at distance.
Tibetan Plateau blog presents a translation of the lyrics and an interesting viewer comment on Acha's blog. The comment is apparently written by a Tibetan who is angry at certain performers in the Qinghai TV benefit gala for Yushu earthquake for their choice of dress and songs. Amongst others, the comment expresses shock to see singers dressed in traditional costumes decorated with otter skin. Although wearing of traditional costumes decorated with animal skins was popular until recently, the practice has been largely shunned by Tibetans following instructions from His Holiness the Dalai Lama in January 2006.
LYRICS OF THE SONG "CALLING"
Where have all the forests gone? where have all the stars gone?
Where has the blue ocean gone?
Where have all the kites gone? where have all the doves gone?
Where has the young cyclist gone?
The antelope from kekexili, the rhino from tropical Africa,
they have not yet closed their hopeless eyes,
The deserted grassland,the gradually warmed up earth,
Who will save all the green lives?
Love every breath of this earth's air,
Love the glory of mother earth,
And all the flying birds
as well as creatures,
Sing a song,
to call upon the light of peace,
to carve the future,
Our dear mother standing in the remote distance in hope,
with a smile on her face but her heart heart trembling inside,
The ruined wall in old summer palace,
The blood on the streets of Iraq,
I do not want to see hands that are holding guns.
Love every breath of this earth's air,
Love the glory of mother earth,
And all the flying birds
as well as creatures,
Sing a song,
to call upon the light of peace,
to cease the fires of war,
Love every breath of this earth's air,
Love the glory of mother earth,
And all the flying birds
as well as creatures,
Sing a song,
to call upon the light of peace,
to carve the future
The forests are back,
The fairytale is back,
The hope from our hearts is back.
[end of lyrics]
The shame of the disaster relief benefit gala
After watching the Qinghai TV benefit gala for disaster relief yesterday evening, the feeling was of great shame, first of all the Tibetan compatriots taking part in the gala, each and every one of them was all dressed up, more ironically, some of them, unexpectedly, were wearing Tibetan dress with otter skin trim, also when I looked at Wangmo's costume it was as though she were performing at a carnival, looking crazy and stupid to the extreme, how can you not look at the Han Chinese singers' costumes, at the very least the other costumes were appropriate for the occasion, even more incredibly, Yungdrug Gyal was singing Tashi Delek songs, what an idiot, not knowing on what kind of occasion to sing what kind of songs, we are dead people, so many of us died and he is still singing Tashi Delek, really such an idiot, sadly, we Tibetans have some singers, who for their own pitiful names, allow themselves to turn into foolish clowns at the mercy of others. The two of them are a disgrace to Tibetan stars.
Tibetan Plateau blog is thankful to a friend and High Peaks Pure Earth for help with translations.
Read more on this article...
Tibetan Plateau blog presents a translation of the lyrics and an interesting viewer comment on Acha's blog. The comment is apparently written by a Tibetan who is angry at certain performers in the Qinghai TV benefit gala for Yushu earthquake for their choice of dress and songs. Amongst others, the comment expresses shock to see singers dressed in traditional costumes decorated with otter skin. Although wearing of traditional costumes decorated with animal skins was popular until recently, the practice has been largely shunned by Tibetans following instructions from His Holiness the Dalai Lama in January 2006.
LYRICS OF THE SONG "CALLING"
Where have all the forests gone? where have all the stars gone?
Where has the blue ocean gone?
Where have all the kites gone? where have all the doves gone?
Where has the young cyclist gone?
The antelope from kekexili, the rhino from tropical Africa,
they have not yet closed their hopeless eyes,
The deserted grassland,the gradually warmed up earth,
Who will save all the green lives?
Love every breath of this earth's air,
Love the glory of mother earth,
And all the flying birds
as well as creatures,
Sing a song,
to call upon the light of peace,
to carve the future,
Our dear mother standing in the remote distance in hope,
with a smile on her face but her heart heart trembling inside,
The ruined wall in old summer palace,
The blood on the streets of Iraq,
I do not want to see hands that are holding guns.
Love every breath of this earth's air,
Love the glory of mother earth,
And all the flying birds
as well as creatures,
Sing a song,
to call upon the light of peace,
to cease the fires of war,
Love every breath of this earth's air,
Love the glory of mother earth,
And all the flying birds
as well as creatures,
Sing a song,
to call upon the light of peace,
to carve the future
The forests are back,
The fairytale is back,
The hope from our hearts is back.
[end of lyrics]
The shame of the disaster relief benefit gala
After watching the Qinghai TV benefit gala for disaster relief yesterday evening, the feeling was of great shame, first of all the Tibetan compatriots taking part in the gala, each and every one of them was all dressed up, more ironically, some of them, unexpectedly, were wearing Tibetan dress with otter skin trim, also when I looked at Wangmo's costume it was as though she were performing at a carnival, looking crazy and stupid to the extreme, how can you not look at the Han Chinese singers' costumes, at the very least the other costumes were appropriate for the occasion, even more incredibly, Yungdrug Gyal was singing Tashi Delek songs, what an idiot, not knowing on what kind of occasion to sing what kind of songs, we are dead people, so many of us died and he is still singing Tashi Delek, really such an idiot, sadly, we Tibetans have some singers, who for their own pitiful names, allow themselves to turn into foolish clowns at the mercy of others. The two of them are a disgrace to Tibetan stars.
Tibetan Plateau blog is thankful to a friend and High Peaks Pure Earth for help with translations.
China's railroad plans
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Prof. Jan T. Andersson has translated a part of an interview with Wang Mengshu, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and a senior consultant on China's domestic high-speed railways, in the German language news magazine Der Spiegel, issue no. 12, 2010. The translation is posted here with Prof. Andersson's permission.
Image: EU Infrastructure.
China
"Very proud"
Der Spiegel, Nr. 12, 2010
Interview with Wang Mengshu
Spiegel: China intends to extend its railroad system to Singapore and Europe. When do you expect the first high-speed trains to roll?
Wang: The Southeast-Asia route should be the first one to be ready, by 2030. We still need to negotiate the gauge, since we want to use the Chinese system. Some Southeast Asian countries have already signalled their consent.
Spiegel: What does China expect from this project?
Wang: We will obtain commodities that the huge Chinese population needs. Burma, for instance, has no money but plenty of resources. We will help such underdeveloped countries to build railroads and to exploit their resources. Many countries have oil, gas and water resources.
Spiegel: Is railroad technology China's new export hit?
Wang: Seventeen countries have asked us to help them build high-speed lines. I am very proud of our technology.
Spiegel: You invest in railroads also in China. Are you going to pay more attention to the western parts of China?
Wang: In 2009 China invested more than 60 billion euros in the train infrastructure. Our network grows by more than 2000 km every year. We expect to have 120 000 km of railroad tracks in China in 2015. If we expand the network into China's Western regions and solve the water problem, then in the future 200 or 300 million people will be able to move there. The West will change China's economy.
Spiegel: You are even thinking of a tunnel to Taiwan. The shortest distance would be some 150 km. Which problem is larger: the technical or the political?
Wang: Technically only the ventilation is a problem. The demand for a tunnel is large, and politics must serve the people. Beijing doesn't see any problems. If there is a tunnel between Great Britain and France, why not between the mainland and Taiwan?
Read more on this article...
Image: EU Infrastructure.
China
"Very proud"
Der Spiegel, Nr. 12, 2010
Interview with Wang Mengshu
Spiegel: China intends to extend its railroad system to Singapore and Europe. When do you expect the first high-speed trains to roll?
Wang: The Southeast-Asia route should be the first one to be ready, by 2030. We still need to negotiate the gauge, since we want to use the Chinese system. Some Southeast Asian countries have already signalled their consent.
Spiegel: What does China expect from this project?
Wang: We will obtain commodities that the huge Chinese population needs. Burma, for instance, has no money but plenty of resources. We will help such underdeveloped countries to build railroads and to exploit their resources. Many countries have oil, gas and water resources.
Spiegel: Is railroad technology China's new export hit?
Wang: Seventeen countries have asked us to help them build high-speed lines. I am very proud of our technology.
Spiegel: You invest in railroads also in China. Are you going to pay more attention to the western parts of China?
Wang: In 2009 China invested more than 60 billion euros in the train infrastructure. Our network grows by more than 2000 km every year. We expect to have 120 000 km of railroad tracks in China in 2015. If we expand the network into China's Western regions and solve the water problem, then in the future 200 or 300 million people will be able to move there. The West will change China's economy.
Spiegel: You are even thinking of a tunnel to Taiwan. The shortest distance would be some 150 km. Which problem is larger: the technical or the political?
Wang: Technically only the ventilation is a problem. The demand for a tunnel is large, and politics must serve the people. Beijing doesn't see any problems. If there is a tunnel between Great Britain and France, why not between the mainland and Taiwan?
"A Drop of Tear: Nyenpo Yutse's Cry for Help"
Thursday, April 29, 2010
This is a translation and re-creation of a Tibetan language blog post by Kunga Tsayang, also known by his pen name Gangnyi (གངས་ཉི་ or "Sun of the Snow"). The original post is not available, as are all other posts on the major Tibetan language blog site, tibetabc.cn, at least since the Janurary of 2010. Thanks to High Peaks Pure Earth, which had saved a copy of the original post on 26 March 2009, Tibetan Plateau blog and Tesi Environmental Awareness Movement are able to present the following translation.
The author, Kunga Tsayang or Gangnyi, was arrested by Chinese authorities on 17 March 2009 and sentenced to 5 years of prison on 17 November 2009 on various charges including posting articles online. Gangnyi is one of the many Tibetan writers, artists and educators who are being arrested or punished by the Chinese government in the recent years, as reported on the blog of Lungrig Gyal, editor of Tibet Times (བོད་ཀྱི་དུས་བབ༑). The following post is an evidence that Gangnyi was an environmental activist and reporter.
The first page of the saved original blog post
མིག་ཆུ་རྡོག་གཅིག༑ གཉེན་པོ་གཡུ་རྩེའི་འོ་དོད༑
A Drop of Tear: Nyenpo Yutse's Cry for Help
Purely beautiful
The mountains, waters and forests of my country are scarred with these unhealable wounds.
Despite forty years of mining, from the beginning of eighties till now, one cay say that no benefits to the locals are seen or heard.
Effects of coal mining: The holy mountain in the ancestral land of the three tribes of Golok people has been scarred with unhealable wounds. The glacier of the upper valley is visibly melting; the lakes and the streams are dwindling and the trees and plants of the lower valleys are dying out silently. All these have happening for years, yet nobody in the area seems to pay attention. So after two years of studying the situation we on behalf of the local people urged local authority to stop these mining activities.
As par the written decision of the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which states that "The sources of resource depletion and environmental pollution are backward modes of production. The local authorities should decisively enforce the necessary national laws, guidelines and policy to quickly stop such activities." Accordingly, these non-beneficial and polluting activities should be stopped immediately. [The written decision of the Party also states that] "Whoever develops a region should also preserve it; whoever destroys the environment should restore it and whoever receive benefits should also compensate." So according to this principle, it is high time that those who caused this destruction and received benefits take responsibility for their actions.
Read more on this article...
The author, Kunga Tsayang or Gangnyi, was arrested by Chinese authorities on 17 March 2009 and sentenced to 5 years of prison on 17 November 2009 on various charges including posting articles online. Gangnyi is one of the many Tibetan writers, artists and educators who are being arrested or punished by the Chinese government in the recent years, as reported on the blog of Lungrig Gyal, editor of Tibet Times (བོད་ཀྱི་དུས་བབ༑). The following post is an evidence that Gangnyi was an environmental activist and reporter.
The first page of the saved original blog post
མིག་ཆུ་རྡོག་གཅིག༑ གཉེན་པོ་གཡུ་རྩེའི་འོ་དོད༑
A Drop of Tear: Nyenpo Yutse's Cry for Help
Purely beautiful
The mountains, waters and forests of my country are scarred with these unhealable wounds.
Despite forty years of mining, from the beginning of eighties till now, one cay say that no benefits to the locals are seen or heard.
Effects of coal mining: The holy mountain in the ancestral land of the three tribes of Golok people has been scarred with unhealable wounds. The glacier of the upper valley is visibly melting; the lakes and the streams are dwindling and the trees and plants of the lower valleys are dying out silently. All these have happening for years, yet nobody in the area seems to pay attention. So after two years of studying the situation we on behalf of the local people urged local authority to stop these mining activities.
As par the written decision of the 17th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which states that "The sources of resource depletion and environmental pollution are backward modes of production. The local authorities should decisively enforce the necessary national laws, guidelines and policy to quickly stop such activities." Accordingly, these non-beneficial and polluting activities should be stopped immediately. [The written decision of the Party also states that] "Whoever develops a region should also preserve it; whoever destroys the environment should restore it and whoever receive benefits should also compensate." So according to this principle, it is high time that those who caused this destruction and received benefits take responsibility for their actions.
Read more on this article...
India poorly informed about Chinese dam project
Monday, April 26, 2010
In recent days, Indian media has been running a story that China has "admitted" that it is building a dam (Zangmu) project on the Yarlung Tsangpo (Brahmaputra River). It is strange that this "news" is presented as some some shocking new information. There is a lot of misinformation being spread around in the media.
China acknowledging that it is building the Zangmu hydropower project should not be "news" because the project has long been openly advertised on official Chinese websites. There should not be any question of admission about things that are open public knowledge. Tibetan Plateau blog reported on the construction of Zangmu dam more than a year ago, in English!
New reports say that India came to know about construction of Zangmu project after its "intelligence agencies" received satellite images of construction work going on for the Zangmu project last fall. This was widely (mis)reported in Indian media late October 2009. I suppose the Indian External Affairs Minister, the person who brought the "news" from his Chinese counterpart, raised Indian concerns about the Zangmu project based on these satellite images. Indian reliance on vague satellite images as some kind of evidence is embarrassing because chinese official websites have been carrying clear photos of Zangmu construction work (see below) and models of completed project for a long time.
Then there is the issue of serious misinformation. In my previous post on misinformation about Zangmu project, I identified confusions about Zangmu project's location and use as a water diversion project. The same confusion continues, here and here are a couple of examples.
Indian media and online writers cannot be blamed too harshly for treating this as "news" and being confused about location of the project, even Hong Kong based South China Morning Post is in the same boat. Zangmu project is located in the middle reaches of Yarlung Tsangpo on the Tibetan Plateau in dZam (རྫམ་) township of Lhokha (Shannan) Prefecture of Tibet Autonomous Region, about 140 km southeast from Lhasa, between Zangs-Ri (Sangri) and rGya-Tsha (Jiacha) counties.
Here is a high resolution image of Zangmu project under progress from GeoEye that is annotated by one of Tibetan Plateau blog's consultants. Tibetan Plateau blog is responsible for the annotation.
Tibetan Plateau blog will soon be posting a map of planned hydropower projects on the Yarlung Tsangpo river. There are more than the five projects "admitted" by China that are planned on the river. Stay tuned.
Read more on this article...
China acknowledging that it is building the Zangmu hydropower project should not be "news" because the project has long been openly advertised on official Chinese websites. There should not be any question of admission about things that are open public knowledge. Tibetan Plateau blog reported on the construction of Zangmu dam more than a year ago, in English!
New reports say that India came to know about construction of Zangmu project after its "intelligence agencies" received satellite images of construction work going on for the Zangmu project last fall. This was widely (mis)reported in Indian media late October 2009. I suppose the Indian External Affairs Minister, the person who brought the "news" from his Chinese counterpart, raised Indian concerns about the Zangmu project based on these satellite images. Indian reliance on vague satellite images as some kind of evidence is embarrassing because chinese official websites have been carrying clear photos of Zangmu construction work (see below) and models of completed project for a long time.
Then there is the issue of serious misinformation. In my previous post on misinformation about Zangmu project, I identified confusions about Zangmu project's location and use as a water diversion project. The same confusion continues, here and here are a couple of examples.
Indian media and online writers cannot be blamed too harshly for treating this as "news" and being confused about location of the project, even Hong Kong based South China Morning Post is in the same boat. Zangmu project is located in the middle reaches of Yarlung Tsangpo on the Tibetan Plateau in dZam (རྫམ་) township of Lhokha (Shannan) Prefecture of Tibet Autonomous Region, about 140 km southeast from Lhasa, between Zangs-Ri (Sangri) and rGya-Tsha (Jiacha) counties.
Here is a high resolution image of Zangmu project under progress from GeoEye that is annotated by one of Tibetan Plateau blog's consultants. Tibetan Plateau blog is responsible for the annotation.
Tibetan Plateau blog will soon be posting a map of planned hydropower projects on the Yarlung Tsangpo river. There are more than the five projects "admitted" by China that are planned on the river. Stay tuned.
Thrangu dam: safe for now
Thursday, April 22, 2010
According to reports, a dam near Thrangu (ཁྲ་འགུ་དགོན་ or "Changu" in Chinese media) monastery has been damaged. Many people, including nomads, had fled higher up into the mountains out of fear that the dam might collapse and the water in its reservoir will destroy the town of Jyekundo (སྐྱེ་རྒུ་མདོ) or Yushu (ཡུལ་ཤུལ / ཡུས་ཧྲུའུ).
This report from The Independent indicates that the dam is sitting like a time bomb that might cause another tragedy: "Emergency officials said the dam could burst at any time, putting 100,000 people in danger".
Thankfully it seems like the water in the reservoir of the dam has been drained and Jyekundo is safe for now.
Imagine what would have happened if the dam had bursted and its water swept the town of Yushu, minutes after the earthquake? Such concerns should be a wake up call for Chinese authorities to reconsider their dam building plans on the Tibetan Plateau, much of which is affected by seismic zones. See here, here and here for China's plans for hydropower development on the Tibetan Plateau.
Below are three Google Earth satellite images (click for larger view) of the dam and the town of Yushu. According to Google Earth, Yushu or Jyekundo is at an altitude of 3,685m and the upstream dam, located South, is at an altitude of 3,800m.
Read more on this article...
This report from The Independent indicates that the dam is sitting like a time bomb that might cause another tragedy: "Emergency officials said the dam could burst at any time, putting 100,000 people in danger".
Thankfully it seems like the water in the reservoir of the dam has been drained and Jyekundo is safe for now.
Imagine what would have happened if the dam had bursted and its water swept the town of Yushu, minutes after the earthquake? Such concerns should be a wake up call for Chinese authorities to reconsider their dam building plans on the Tibetan Plateau, much of which is affected by seismic zones. See here, here and here for China's plans for hydropower development on the Tibetan Plateau.
Below are three Google Earth satellite images (click for larger view) of the dam and the town of Yushu. According to Google Earth, Yushu or Jyekundo is at an altitude of 3,685m and the upstream dam, located South, is at an altitude of 3,800m.
Read more on this article...
Earthquake in Yushu
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
See the last section for ways you can donate to help with the relief work
A nice Tibetan song dedicated to the earthquake victims
Google has added some useful tools to support earthquake disaster relief in Yushu. And for regular real time updates (even better than tweeter), check this link. Here are some informative satellite images from google. Click to make images bigger.
GeoEye GE-1 high resolution satellite imagery of Yushu after the earthquake
USGS Shake Map showing different colors for different intensity levels of tremor
Surface acceleration
Damage intensity
Click on this link to see Kyegu Monastery relief work album. Lots of pictures.
Xinhua reports China is carrying out a geological reconnaissance for the rebuilding of the quake-hit township of Jyekundo, to be turned into "a plateau ecological tourist city."
Tibetan language map the region
Websites specifically dedicated to providing information on the ongoing situation and relief work:
Special website of local consortium of NGO's, now active in
Jiegu, Xining and Chengdu.
Plateau Perspectives is one the best sources of updates on the situation on the ground. See this special website.
University of Virginia also has a special website.
This photo of a girl reading her book in front of earthquake ruins is really something. Photo from pourmecoffee.com.
Al Jazeera report on cremations for the dead:
Here are three Google Earth images (Thanks Nima-la!) of the damaged dam near Thrangu (ཁྲ་འགུ་དགོན་ or "Changu" in Chinese media) monastery. The first two images show the town of Yushu (ཡུལ་ཤུལ / ཡུས་ཧྲུའུ) or Jyekundo (སྐྱེ་རྒུ་མདོ) at an altitude of 3,685m and the dam located South, upstream at an altitude of 3,800m. The second is a close image of the dam. This report from The Independent says that "Emergency officials said the dam could burst at any time, putting 100,000 people in danger". This dam is like a time bomb that might cause another tragedy. I urge governments, groups and citizens of China to urge China to use its resources to gradually empty the reservoir, secure the dam and take people living downstream away to safer areas.
The following images are from a Chinese language blog.
For more images from the same source (warning: disturbing images of dead victims), click here
lhatseri tweets: "Tibetan language blogs sites from PRC have been blocked. No posts about the earthquakes."
Death toll rises to 589, according to China Daily
A "Letter from China" in the New Yorker talks about China's news censorship about the earthquake
The International Rivers has raised timely concerns about dam safety and questioned the sensibility of proposed dam projects in the region.
A set of still images from the Telegraph also shows aid work going to the region.
This New York Times video shows a different set of clips.
High Peaks Pure Earth has translated Tibetan netizen reactions to the earthquake. More here.
Chinese language CCTV report
Two English language news reports available on youtube:
For more information, see these stories from Xinhua and BBC. For technical information about the tremors, see this US Geological Survey site.
==================
SUPPORT RELIEF WORK BY DONATING TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT WORK IN THE REGION
1. Donate to Tibetan Village Project's earthquake relief fund by clicking here
2. Another NGO working locally is Machik. You can donate to Machik's earthquake relief fund by clicking here
3. Tibet Foundation
Read more on this article...
A nice Tibetan song dedicated to the earthquake victims
Google has added some useful tools to support earthquake disaster relief in Yushu. And for regular real time updates (even better than tweeter), check this link. Here are some informative satellite images from google. Click to make images bigger.
GeoEye GE-1 high resolution satellite imagery of Yushu after the earthquake
USGS Shake Map showing different colors for different intensity levels of tremor
Surface acceleration
Damage intensity
Click on this link to see Kyegu Monastery relief work album. Lots of pictures.
Xinhua reports China is carrying out a geological reconnaissance for the rebuilding of the quake-hit township of Jyekundo, to be turned into "a plateau ecological tourist city."
Tibetan language map the region
Websites specifically dedicated to providing information on the ongoing situation and relief work:
Special website of local consortium of NGO's, now active in
Jiegu, Xining and Chengdu.
Plateau Perspectives is one the best sources of updates on the situation on the ground. See this special website.
University of Virginia also has a special website.
This photo of a girl reading her book in front of earthquake ruins is really something. Photo from pourmecoffee.com.
Al Jazeera report on cremations for the dead:
Here are three Google Earth images (Thanks Nima-la!) of the damaged dam near Thrangu (ཁྲ་འགུ་དགོན་ or "Changu" in Chinese media) monastery. The first two images show the town of Yushu (ཡུལ་ཤུལ / ཡུས་ཧྲུའུ) or Jyekundo (སྐྱེ་རྒུ་མདོ) at an altitude of 3,685m and the dam located South, upstream at an altitude of 3,800m. The second is a close image of the dam. This report from The Independent says that "Emergency officials said the dam could burst at any time, putting 100,000 people in danger". This dam is like a time bomb that might cause another tragedy. I urge governments, groups and citizens of China to urge China to use its resources to gradually empty the reservoir, secure the dam and take people living downstream away to safer areas.
The following images are from a Chinese language blog.
For more images from the same source (warning: disturbing images of dead victims), click here
lhatseri tweets: "Tibetan language blogs sites from PRC have been blocked. No posts about the earthquakes."
Death toll rises to 589, according to China Daily
A "Letter from China" in the New Yorker talks about China's news censorship about the earthquake
The International Rivers has raised timely concerns about dam safety and questioned the sensibility of proposed dam projects in the region.
A set of still images from the Telegraph also shows aid work going to the region.
This New York Times video shows a different set of clips.
High Peaks Pure Earth has translated Tibetan netizen reactions to the earthquake. More here.
Chinese language CCTV report
Two English language news reports available on youtube:
For more information, see these stories from Xinhua and BBC. For technical information about the tremors, see this US Geological Survey site.
==================
SUPPORT RELIEF WORK BY DONATING TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT WORK IN THE REGION
1. Donate to Tibetan Village Project's earthquake relief fund by clicking here
2. Another NGO working locally is Machik. You can donate to Machik's earthquake relief fund by clicking here
3. Tibet Foundation
Read more on this article...
Update on big dam (Shuangjiangkou) in Ngawa Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Tibetan Plateau blog reader-contributor James Trevor has compiled a brief informative report on the status and impacts of Shuangjiangkou dam. The main source of information for the report is from the (Chinese language) Journal of the Southwest Minority University, Vol. 2009 / 07, pages 16 to 19.
The Shuangjiangkou dam will be located in Ngawa Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, approximately two kilometers from the point where Barkham county’s Kyomkyo River (Jiao-Muzu in Chinese) and Chuchen county’s Trokyab River (Chuosi-Jia in Chinese) merge into a single river. Shuangjiangkou is “confluence of two rivers” in Chinese. The dam will serve as an upstream regulatory dam for a series of dams downstream on the Dadu River (Gyalrong Gyamo Ngulchu in Tibetan). Several of these dams will be built in Tibetan areas of Trokyab, Tsodun, Drakpar, Kyomkyo, and Dampa in Chuchen and Barkham counties.
Here are some photos of the site posted by Kou Lihang on Google Earth. The first photo shows construction work on the project.
Here is James' full report:
Read more on this article...
The Shuangjiangkou dam will be located in Ngawa Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, approximately two kilometers from the point where Barkham county’s Kyomkyo River (Jiao-Muzu in Chinese) and Chuchen county’s Trokyab River (Chuosi-Jia in Chinese) merge into a single river. Shuangjiangkou is “confluence of two rivers” in Chinese. The dam will serve as an upstream regulatory dam for a series of dams downstream on the Dadu River (Gyalrong Gyamo Ngulchu in Tibetan). Several of these dams will be built in Tibetan areas of Trokyab, Tsodun, Drakpar, Kyomkyo, and Dampa in Chuchen and Barkham counties.
Here are some photos of the site posted by Kou Lihang on Google Earth. The first photo shows construction work on the project.
Here is James' full report:
At present the Shuangjiangkou dam is under construction and the local people have to move out of the area of the future reservoir. The only descriptions of the project I could find on the internet written in English is an article by Tashi Tsering from 2004, see pages 9 and 10. He has also reported about the dam in this short news release:
At that time in 2004 and 2005 it was just a plan for another dam. While there were concerns concerning “local Tibetans who have been ordered to move away” and “historical Buddhist shrines in the area … likely to be submerged… ” no details were available. Using various sources published since then and the internet I was able to get a much more detailed view of what happens in Gyarong in 2010. On Google Earth a photo of construction activity at the construction site has been posted by Kou Lihang at position 31° 47´ 54” N and 101° 54´ 50” E [posted above]. This is more or less where the dam is built. The exact position is 2 kilometers downstream from where the two rivers meet.
Shuangjiangkou Dam Impact Data
Technical project description
The dam is 314m high. The reservoir storage capacity is 2.732 billion cubic meters of water. Installed generating capacity is 2000 MW with four turbines rated at 500 MW each. The average water flow at the dam site was measured at 524 cubic meters per second as the year round average. The average generated electricity is expected at 8.128 billion kw/h per year. The minimum expected generated electricity is 4.86 billion kw/h per year. The dam is expected to be filled with water by November 2014 and the first turbine is to run in 2015. The building cost is estimated to be 20 billion RMB or 3 billion US Dollars.
By regulating the water flow of the Dadu River with such a big reservoir the generating capacity of the dams planed or in operation further downstream will also increase by an estimated 1782 MW per year. The reservoir is also intended to hold back as much as possible of the sand that currently flows down the Dadu. Each cubic meter of water contains at present on average of between 225 grams to 298 grams of sand and silt. The total amount expected to arrive at the reservoir per year is around 4 million tons. Holding back such a large amount of sand has a positive effect on all dams downstream, as all dam reservoirs remain working at full capacity for longer and turbines are not damaged by sand. The foundation of the dam is at 2196 m above sea level and the top of the dam at 2510 m. The water level is planned to reach a maximum level of 2500 m or 10 meters below the top of the dam. At the top the dam will be 16 meters wide.
Impact on nature, population and culture
The reservoir size, once the level of 2500 meters above sea level is achieved, is from the dam about 33 kilometers along the river in direction west or Guanyin. In direction east the water will reach just below the town of Songgang which is 35 kilometers from the dam. Travelling for example from east to west with a visit to the dam it is a 68 kilometers long trip.
Impact on population
A total of 5925 persons have to move out of the flooded area. Nearly all of them are Gyarong Tibetans. The areas to be flooded are part of Ma’erkang (Barkham) and Jinchuan (Chuchen) county. Only one small township (Xiang) named Baiwan (Pagbar, meaning “White Bend”) with a population of 2390 persons is inside the reservoir area. The main village of Baiwan Xiang is called Jiada (Kyodag) with a population of 300 persons. All other people are from other small villages along the rivers. The dam is designed to fill up to a level of a maximum of 2500 meters above sea level as the towns of Songgang (Zonggag) and Guanyin would be under water too, if a higher level would have been decided. It looks like the reservoir size is designed to minimize the impact on the local population. Any other site along the Dadu River for a similar sized dam would result in much more people resettled.
Impact on culture
The two counties have a total of 82 Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and temples with 2252 monks in 2009. There are 7 monasteries or village temples which will be under water. The number of monks in the 7 monasteries is 137 in 2009. The 7 monasteries have 1787 followers (persons supporting and visiting frequently) in the surrounding villages which are 4.8% of the population of the two counties. This means the majority of the 5925 persons who will be resettled will be able to visit their traditional monastery. The resettlement as planed in 2009 is to move people in the same township to higher ground and not far away to new locations. An archeological survey of the reservoir area was completed during 20 days in June 2005. The archeologists from Chengdu were searching for new underground sites. Indeed 12 sites, mostly from the New Stone Age, were discovered in such a short time. The details are published in “Sichuan Wenwu” (Sichuan Cultural Relics) 6 / 2005 pages 17 to 20.
The main source for the data: Journal of the Southwest Minority University, Vol. 2009 / 07, pages 16 to 19. Chengdu, China. No abstract in English. For the technical data the most up to date sources from the internet were used. Older articles are still available but the most recent figures were used for this update.
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Using Tibetan nomads for border claims
A couple of days ago, Press Trust of India reported about China pushing Tibetan nomads towards Ladakh region of India to strengthen territorial claims over disputed border areas. PTI had quoted an Indian Bhartiya Janata Party delegation visiting Ladakh about the phenomenon. Since the PTI report is a very brief, I quote here in full:
I asked around for more information on this. My Ladakhi friend, Tashi Morup, who is also a local journalist, told me that this phenomenon has been happening for a long time.
Here are some pictures of Tashi Morup and I visiting this part of Indo-Tibetan border.
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China pushing nomads into Ladakh region: BJP
STAFF WRITER 19:19 HRS IST
Leh, Apr 4 (PTI) Accusing China of pushing its nomads and grazers into Ladakh, a BJP delegation which visited the region today demanded that Government open the area to tourism to defeat the "Chinese design of grabbing the land by inches".
"We have come here to ascertain reports about the Chinese incursion and what we have found is shocking...," said party spokesperson Rajeev Pratap Rudy, who was part of the five-member delegation that visited Ladakh and bordering areas of Nyoma and Demchok, 300 kilometres from southeast of this Himalayan town.
This is the first national-level political delegation to visit the far flung areas of the Himalayan town. The team included former Uttrakhand Chief Minister Bhagat Singh Koshiyari and former J and K unit chief Nirmal Singh.
I asked around for more information on this. My Ladakhi friend, Tashi Morup, who is also a local journalist, told me that this phenomenon has been happening for a long time.
Here are some pictures of Tashi Morup and I visiting this part of Indo-Tibetan border.
Read more on this article...
"Flower power monk protects 'wild west'"
Thursday, April 1, 2010
The following article, including photos, is from China Daily. Thanks to a reader for sharing this article. It's about a monk's research and public education work on flowers of the Tibetan Plateau. Normally I add articles of interest published elsewhere on a separate "Other Stories" page, but this one gets a special place on the Tibetan Plateau Blog. I hope Sonam Konchog la's story inspires more Tibetans to engage in environmental or other such research and education initiatives, and not be completely bogged down by religion or politics.
Flower power monk protects 'wild west'
By Guo Shuhan (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-02-01 09:52
Sonam Konchog, 44, is obsessed with flowers. The lama of Serkhang Monastery in southwestern Qinghai province has spent a good part of his life observing the plants blanketing the holy Gadoiqowo Mountain in Chindu county, Yushu Tibetan prefecture.
"Have you ever gazed at a flower for more than a minute? If you have, you'll know you can communicate with them," he says.
This passionate man of flowers has compiled an illustrated pamphlet of the indigenous flora and distributed it to the villagers in this area. Sonam believes that only when they become aware of their natural environment, will they be motivated to stop tourists and pilgrims from picking the flowers at will.
In the 25 years that he has spent at the monastery, Sonam has traveled to the holy mountain every August, as dictated by his religion. The numerous flowers fascinated him and he began to set aside some money to buy himself a camera. He finally got one in 2004.
Flowers in full bloom always draw his full attention. His favorite is the red poppywort. The lama seems to share a special relationship with this tiny flower with bright red petals and a sweet fragrance. Sonam sets off on its trail between May and June, as the flower stays in bloom for just four short days.
Red poppywort is an endangered species. Courtesy of Sonam Konchog
A senior lama of the monastery, who specializes in traditional Tibetan medicine, told Sonam the flower is good for the liver and lungs. It was once common in the area, but is becoming harder to find, as are many other kinds of plants.
In 2005, Sonam decided to do something to protect these flowering plants. Every year, he along with 19 other monks and villagers, visits the mountain in August when the flowers are in bloom.
In 2008, he put together some 200 pictures of different flowers into a pamphlet titled Botany Archives of Holy Gadoiqowo Mountain. Each flower is carefully catalogued with its name in Tibetan, English, Latin and Chinese. The pamphlet also details the medicinal properties of the flowers, if any.
Thanks to help from the Shanshui Conservation Center, an organization for bio-diversity conservation founded by professor Lu Zhi of Peking University, and the Qinghai Forest Bureau, 1,500 copies of the pamphlet have been distributed to the locals for free.
"We have been looking for people like Sonam who are dedicated and capable in environment protection," Lu says. "These grass-root conservationists are actually the most powerful force in protecting China's wild west."
Sonam has included parts of the pamphlet in 1,000 textbooks, in Tibetan, for students, which he has helped edit. He has enlisted the support of herdsmen to ensure these flowers are not picked, and also made a short documentary about dandelions last year for a video project sponsored by the EU-China Biodiversity Program.
The project invited 10 amateur filmmakers to articulate the challenges for biological and cultural diversity. Eight documentaries were shown last December in Kunming, Yunnan province.
"We Tibetan Buddhists revere nature. The pamphlet tells people that plants cannot survive if torn from their roots.
"I trust the good nature of the locals. Their care of plants and animals will bring about a lasting harmonious relationship with the holy mountain, which has blessed us generation after generation," Sonam says. Read more on this article...
Flower power monk protects 'wild west'
By Guo Shuhan (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-02-01 09:52
Sonam Konchog, 44, is obsessed with flowers. The lama of Serkhang Monastery in southwestern Qinghai province has spent a good part of his life observing the plants blanketing the holy Gadoiqowo Mountain in Chindu county, Yushu Tibetan prefecture.
"Have you ever gazed at a flower for more than a minute? If you have, you'll know you can communicate with them," he says.
This passionate man of flowers has compiled an illustrated pamphlet of the indigenous flora and distributed it to the villagers in this area. Sonam believes that only when they become aware of their natural environment, will they be motivated to stop tourists and pilgrims from picking the flowers at will.
In the 25 years that he has spent at the monastery, Sonam has traveled to the holy mountain every August, as dictated by his religion. The numerous flowers fascinated him and he began to set aside some money to buy himself a camera. He finally got one in 2004.
Flowers in full bloom always draw his full attention. His favorite is the red poppywort. The lama seems to share a special relationship with this tiny flower with bright red petals and a sweet fragrance. Sonam sets off on its trail between May and June, as the flower stays in bloom for just four short days.
Red poppywort is an endangered species. Courtesy of Sonam Konchog
A senior lama of the monastery, who specializes in traditional Tibetan medicine, told Sonam the flower is good for the liver and lungs. It was once common in the area, but is becoming harder to find, as are many other kinds of plants.
In 2005, Sonam decided to do something to protect these flowering plants. Every year, he along with 19 other monks and villagers, visits the mountain in August when the flowers are in bloom.
In 2008, he put together some 200 pictures of different flowers into a pamphlet titled Botany Archives of Holy Gadoiqowo Mountain. Each flower is carefully catalogued with its name in Tibetan, English, Latin and Chinese. The pamphlet also details the medicinal properties of the flowers, if any.
Thanks to help from the Shanshui Conservation Center, an organization for bio-diversity conservation founded by professor Lu Zhi of Peking University, and the Qinghai Forest Bureau, 1,500 copies of the pamphlet have been distributed to the locals for free.
"We have been looking for people like Sonam who are dedicated and capable in environment protection," Lu says. "These grass-root conservationists are actually the most powerful force in protecting China's wild west."
Sonam has included parts of the pamphlet in 1,000 textbooks, in Tibetan, for students, which he has helped edit. He has enlisted the support of herdsmen to ensure these flowers are not picked, and also made a short documentary about dandelions last year for a video project sponsored by the EU-China Biodiversity Program.
The project invited 10 amateur filmmakers to articulate the challenges for biological and cultural diversity. Eight documentaries were shown last December in Kunming, Yunnan province.
"We Tibetan Buddhists revere nature. The pamphlet tells people that plants cannot survive if torn from their roots.
"I trust the good nature of the locals. Their care of plants and animals will bring about a lasting harmonious relationship with the holy mountain, which has blessed us generation after generation," Sonam says. Read more on this article...
Photos of fish caught in dry lake bed in China's Yunnan Province
Monday, March 29, 2010
ChinaSmack has posted some amazing photos of fish trapped in a dry lake bed in Southeastern Yunnan Province. The province and other parts of mainland South-east Asia have been suffering from severe drought this year. Although the images were captured in Luliang county , which is not on the Tibetan plateau, I still find them worth sharing. Pictures speak a thousand words.
To see more pics, check out ChinaSmack.
Read more on this article...
To see more pics, check out ChinaSmack.
Read more on this article...
New environmental documentary by a Tibetan
Thursday, March 11, 2010
A Tibetan man, Tsultrim Gyatso, has made a documentary film on the Colorado River. Gyatso-la is a staff and board member of the Tibetan Ecology Foundation, which has a wonderful environmental education website in both Tibetan and English languages. As a part of Tibetan Ecology Foundation's project, the film "The Blood of the Earth: Colorado River" aims to educate Tibetan people about river ecology and implications of development. The film website does not have any video clips right now but it says that the entire documentary will be available for viewing online both in English and in Tibetan. The following two paragraphs from the film website sums up their vision:
Twenty-three years ago, in 1985, television came to Tibet. From television, we learned how to change our dress, we learned how to eat new species (like crustaceans – sea insects), and from Hollywood, it seems people learn how to be violent. Through this medium, we can also learn how to protect our environment.
The Tibetan Ecology Foundation proposes to produce a documentary movie about the Colorado River. The movie would be made in both the Tibetan and the Chinese language, for distribution and viewing among the Tibetan and Chinese people, all of whom share a responsibility for the Tibetan Plateau. The Blood of the Earth-Colorado River will discuss river management, utilization, and conservation in the American Southwest. For Tibetans, the story of the Colorado River will help them to prophesize the future story of their own rivers. And with a glimpse into their future, perhaps the people of the Tibetan Plateau will have the tools to fulfill their responsibility to best care for their rivers.
Read more on this article...
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