Visiting Chinese vice-premier calls Tibet mega dam safe and top priority, but fails to allay major concerns

Can the world’s largest dam be designed and built to withstand a catastrophic earthquake of the kind the Himalayan region is all too familiar with, including the one which struck the Mt Everest County of Dingri in Tibet early last year? How can it not be said that the dam itself will not cause an earthquake, given the sheer volume of water it will hold in the new lake formation and our knowledge of the phenomenon known as reservoir-induced seismicity?

These questions continue to beggar answer as Chinese Vice-Premier Zhang Gouqing, who visited Tibet Autonomous Region from Apr 10 to 12, stressed Beijing’s commitment to the “landmark project” when visiting the Yarlung Tsangpo construction site.

The dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo will be the world’s largest hydropower facility. It is a key element of China’s plans to exploit the potential of the Tibetan Plateau by boosting regional growth through green energy and infrastructure. Zhang stressed Beijing’s commitment to the project during his visit, saying it would be a “major landmark project of the new era”, reported scmp.com Apr 13.

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