The Three Gorges Dam Was Not Worth It

How would you feel if you had to relocate to save a city that you have never visited in your entire life? Not very good, right? I don't think the Three Gorges Dam was worth all of the negative things it caused. First, even though it creates hydroelectric power, it causes water pollution. Second, the dam made 1.25 million people have to relocate. Third, it can create natural disasters like earthquakes and landslides. Last but not least, the dam has had a very negative environmental impact. Therefore, I think that the Three Gorges Dam was not worth all of the negative things it created. 

Even though the Three Gorges Dam makes clean energy, it causes a lot of water pollution. When the dam was built it caused a rise in the water behind it and some factories had to be abandoned, but those factories had pollutants in them and they leeched into the water. Water pollution kills fish which can be a food source for the locals. The pollution also contaminates the water which is used for drinking water and washing food, so if the people drink the water they can get very sick. The fact that the Three Gorges Dam produces clean energy does not mean that water pollution is okay.

Since the Three Gorges Dam created a lake behind it, the flooding caused all locals to relocate if they lived below 175 feet above sea level. The government gave the locals compensation, but it was not nearly enough for the houses the government wanted them to live in. The soil around those houses is infertile, which makes it hard for the people to feed their families. This means that the locals had to pick up extra jobs to earn enough money to survive. I think that it is terrible that locals who had no say in the dam being built had to move. 

The Three Gorges Dam can also cause devastating natural disasters like landslides. If a natural disaster was big enough it could ruin the dam and that would be a huge waste of money. Also, it could destroy homes and villages. If the dam ruined homes or villages, the locals would either die or be displaced even more. The Three Gorges Dam should not be an excuse for natural disasters.

The dam also has a huge environmental impact. Because of the water pollution, it hurts animals. The water pollution also ruins crops. Also, the current landscape around the place where the dam is is limestone, which dissolves in water, changing the landscape forever. We should not have the Three Gorges Dam because of the negative environmental impact.

In conclusion, the Three Gorges Dam was not worth it. First, just because there is clean energy, does not mean water pollution is okay. Second, the Three Gorges Dam made locals move to different places. Third, the dam can create natural disasters that can be very devastating. Fourthly and lastly, the dam has a very negative environmental impact. We obviously don't need this dam, the traditional Chinese people have survived for centuries without this dam, why do we need it now?