China’s dam-building will cause more problems than it solves
June 19, 2011
In 2007, China became the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases.
Since then, not only the EU and the US, but also developing nations such
as the alliance of small island states have put the government in
Beijing under pressure to adopt binding emission cuts.
At the 2009 climate summit in Copenhagen, China announced that it would
reduce its carbon intensity – the amount of greenhouse gas emissions per
unit of economic output – by at least 40% by 2020. Achieving this
ambitious goal has become an overriding political priority for the
Chinese government. The draft of its new five-year plan, which will be
discussed by the National People’s Congress in March, includes an
environmental tax and other carbon-cutting measures.
The five-year plan also includes the most relentless dam-building effort
that any nation has ever undertaken in history. If approved, this
program would cut off the country’s nose to spite her face. It would
irreversibly destroy China’s great rivers and biodiversity hotspots of
global importance.
China already counts more dams within its borders than any other
country. It has paid a huge price for this development. Chinese dams
have displaced an estimated 23 million people. Dam breaks in the country
with the world’s worst safety record have killed approximately 300,000
people. Scientific evidence suggests that one particular project, the
Zipingpu Dam, may have triggered the devastating earthquake in Sichuan
of 2008. Dams have also taken a huge toll on China’s biodiversity,
causing fisheries to suffer and driving charismatic species such as the
Yangtze River Dolphin to extinction.
As part of its low-carbon diet, the Chinese government plans to approve
new hydropower plants with a capacity of 140 gigawatts over the next
five years. For comparison, Brazil, the United States and Canada have
each built between 75 and 85 gigawatts of hydropower capacity in their
entire history. Achieving the new plan’s target would require building
cascades of dams on several rivers in China’s south-west and on the
Tibetan plateau – regions which are populated by ethnic minorities,
ecologically fragile, rich in biodiversity, and seismically active.
As a harbinger of the new trend, the Chinese government recently
announced that it would allow a dam cascade on the Nu River or Salween –
a pristine river at the heart of a World Heritage Site – to be built.
China’s premier, Wen Jiabao, had stopped these projects in 2004 as a
major concession to environmentalists. The government also agreed to
shrink the most important fisheries reserve on the Yangtze River so that
a new hydropower scheme could go forward.
The unprecedented dam building spree is being pushed by provincial
governments and state-owned energy companies, which often pursue vested
interests. In the past, these actors were kept in check by a coalition
of environmental activists, journalists and government officials, who
often managed to gain the ear of China’s top leaders. This has changed
since Copenhagen. International pressure to limit greenhouse gas
emissions is the single most important factor behind the huge push for
hydropower in China.
Climate change is the most serious environmental threat of our
generation. Yet the international community should address this threat
in a holistic way, without losing sight of other challenges to the
planet’s future. The world is losing biodiversity at an alarming rate.
Rivers, lakes and wetlands have suffered more dramatic changes than any
other type of ecosystem. Because of dam building and other factors,
freshwater species have on average lost half their populations between
1970 and 2000, and more than a third of all freshwater fishes are at
risk of extinction.
As the head of the UN Environmental Programme warned last year, it would
be arrogant to assume that humanity can survive without biodiversity. We
cannot sacrifice the planet’s arteries to save her lungs. China not only
has a moral obligation to participate in the fight against climate
change. The country has also committed to protecting its ecosystems
under the Convention on Biological Diversity. It deserves respect for
trying to limit greenhouse gas emissions at a per-capita level which is
much lower than what industrialised nations emit. World leaders should
let the government in Beijing know that they don’t want China to destroy
her rivers and the rich biodiversity they support to reach her ambitious
carbon goals.
Peter Bosshard is the policy director of International Rivers, an
international environmental and human rights organization.
Source: http://damsandalternatives.blogspot.com/2011/03/chinas-dam-building-will-cause-more.html
Tourists from Asia, America and Europe arrives in Clark Philippines looking for the best restaurant in Angeles City to wine and dine before nightlife entertainment begins; many wine and food lovers look for the best fine dining restaurant in Angeles City to relax and unwind after golf or work in Clark Philippines, others bring their families to enjoy a good dinner at the child friendly restaurant in Angeles City Pampanga.
Wine and food lovers travel north out of town from Manila towards Pampanga to wine and dine at the best restaurant in Angeles City, uncorking a few bottles of fine vintage wine from Yats Wine Cellars accompanied by juicy US steaks or an assortment of fine seafood and vegetarian dishes only available in the best restaurants in Pampanga Clark Philippines
Best restaurant in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Philippines serves great steaks and seafood with fine vintage wine. The wine cellars of this restaurant in Clark Pampanga offer wine lovers a wide variety of vintage wines to enjoy with the delicious food and elegant cuisine of this fine dining restaurant. These wines are not available elsewhere in the Philippines except in the outlets of Yats Restaurant in Angeles City and Clark Philippines. The combination of fine wine, good food, cozy and elegant dining ambience and excellent service makes every dinner at this frequently visited restaurant in Clark Philippines a special treat. Guests from Manila, Subic, Angeles City and Clark Pampanga enjoy dining at this popular restaurant and wine bar for a number of reasons. Some praise this top rated restaurant for its private dining rooms that offer privacy and class. Others like the cozy elegant ambience of the main dining room of this fine dining restaurant in Clark. Foodies prefer to dine at this restaurant in Clark Philippines for its classic French Mediterranean cuisine and the genuine ingredients that go into the not only the meat but also the sidings in this restaurant. Wine lovers favor this resto bar in Pampanga because it is the best restaurant in Manila and Pampanga with an large wine list that offers many selections of fine vintage wines at good prices. Event organizers frequently choose this restaurant in Clark for corporate meetings, anniversaries, awarding ceremonies, small wedding receptions, private parties and all sorts of other functions and events. Many visitors to Angeles City and Clark Pampanga regard Yats Restaurant as a one-stop all-purpose business center complete with fine dining, wine lounge and meeting facilities, a very convenient venue for business executives staying in Angeles City, Pampanga and Clark Philippines.
For comments, inquiries and reservations click on Click here for inquiry and reservations
Restaurant@Yats-International.com
(045) 599-5600
0922-870-5178
0917-520-4401
Ask for Pedro and Rechel
Getting to this fine dining restaurant of Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Pampanga Philippines
How to get to this fine-dining restaurant in Clark Philippines? Once you get to Clark Freeport, go straight until you hit Mimosa. After you enter Mimosa, stay on the left on Mimosa Drive, go past the Holiday Inn and Yats Restaurant (green top, independent 1-storey structure) is on your left. Just past the Yats Restaurant is the London Pub.
Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar
Mimosa Drive past Holiday Inn, Mimosa Leisure Estate,
Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga, Philippines 2023
Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay
For any assistance in planning and organizing a wedding ceremony, indoor or outdoor garden reception or to find other wedding service providers, Click here to contact us click here
For assistance in hotel and resort bookings in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines, log on to
http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com
To buy wine in Manila, Pampanga, Angeles City, Clark or Subic please log on to http://www. ClarkWineCenter.com
To inquire with the highly recommended beach resort hotel in Clark Pampanga visit http://www.ClearwaterPhililippines.com
For more information about Clark, Pampanga, Philippines log on to
http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com
