Liujiaxia Dam
Encyclopedia
The Liujiaxia Dam is a major hydroelectric dam on the upper Yellow River
, in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture
of China's Gansu
Province. The dam and its hydroelectric facility (Liujiaxia Hydroelectric Station) are located in Liujia Gorge, or Liujiaxia (literally, "Liu Family's Gorge"), just downstream from the fall of the Tao River
into the Yellow River. The site is on the eastern outskirts of Liujiaxia Town
. Since Liujiaxia Town is the county seat of Yongjing County, it is often marked on less detailed maps simply as "Yongjing".
The Liujiaxia Reservoir formed by the dam is the largest body of water within Gansu. The primary purpose of the dam is generating electricity; in addition, it is used for flood control, irrigation, and "ice flood prevention". The dam's location is about 70 km (43.5 mi) west-south-west (or 100 km (62.1 mi) upstream) from the provincial capital Lanzhou
.
Liujiaxia Dam is a concrete gravity dam 147 m (482 ft) high and 16 metres (52 ft) wide on top. The main section of the dam is 204 m (669 ft) long; including auxiliary sections on both sides, the length totals 840 m (2,756 ft).
The power plant has 5 generators with the total installed capacity of 1,225 MW. When it became fully operational in 1974, it became the country's largest hydroelectric power plant, and remained so until the 1980s.
, the Communist government announced a large-scale program of hydroelectric dam construction on the Yellow River
. According to the plan, a dam was to be built in each of the Three Gorges of the Yellow River: Liujia Gorge, Yanguo Gorge, and Bapan Gorge. The detailed geological investigation of the area, to choose the most suitable site for the dams, started immediately.
In 1958 construction work started on the first two dams, both located in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture's Yongjing County: the 57-meter high Yanguoxia Dam (in Yangou Gorge, downstream from Liujiaxia) and the 147-meter high Liujiaxia Dam in Liujia Gorge. While the smaller Yanguoxia Dam was completed in 1961, the work on Liujiaxia Dam itself was suspended in 1961-63, and the dam itself was only completed in 1969. The five generators were brought into service, one after another, between 1969 and 1974.
Hu Jintao
, then a young engineer, joined the project's staff in 1968. Guo Moruo
visited the site in 1971 and wrote a poem on the occasion.
The reservoirs created by the three-dam cascade (also including Bapanxia Dam (1968-1975) farther downstream) displaced a large number of local farmers. The three reservoirs flooded 118,229 (7,881 hectares) of farmland and displaced 43,829 residents, primarily in Yongjing County. The compensation payments to the farmers affected by the Liujiaxia Dams reportedly averaged 364 yuan per person (but in reality may have been even lower), and were grossly inadequate. It is said that the residents received lower compensation amount than they could otherwise because in 1958, during the Great Leap Forward
, when the Yanguoxia project started, they understated the value of their assets, as they were afraid to be classified as "rich peasants", i.e. class enemies.
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
, in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture
Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture
Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture is in Western China's Gansu Province, south of the capital, Lanzhou. It is an autonomous prefecture for the Muslim Hui people, a large Chinese ethnic group. It also includes two autonomous counties for other Muslim groups, namely Dongxiang, Salar, and...
of China's Gansu
Gansu
' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
Province. The dam and its hydroelectric facility (Liujiaxia Hydroelectric Station) are located in Liujia Gorge, or Liujiaxia (literally, "Liu Family's Gorge"), just downstream from the fall of the Tao River
Tao River
Tao River is a right tributary of China's Yellow River. It starts in Xiqing Mountains near the Gansu-Qinghai border, flows eastward across Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and then northward more or less along the border between Dingxi Prefecture-level City in the east and Gannan and Linxia...
into the Yellow River. The site is on the eastern outskirts of Liujiaxia Town
Town (China)
When referring to political divisions of China, town is the standard English translation of the Chinese 鎮 . It is a fourth-level administrative unit, i.e...
. Since Liujiaxia Town is the county seat of Yongjing County, it is often marked on less detailed maps simply as "Yongjing".
The Liujiaxia Reservoir formed by the dam is the largest body of water within Gansu. The primary purpose of the dam is generating electricity; in addition, it is used for flood control, irrigation, and "ice flood prevention". The dam's location is about 70 km (43.5 mi) west-south-west (or 100 km (62.1 mi) upstream) from the provincial capital Lanzhou
Lanzhou
Lanzhou is the capital and largest city of Gansu Province in Northwest China. A prefecture-level city, it is a key regional transportation hub, allowing areas further west to maintain railroad connections to the eastern half of the country....
.
Liujiaxia Dam is a concrete gravity dam 147 m (482 ft) high and 16 metres (52 ft) wide on top. The main section of the dam is 204 m (669 ft) long; including auxiliary sections on both sides, the length totals 840 m (2,756 ft).
The power plant has 5 generators with the total installed capacity of 1,225 MW. When it became fully operational in 1974, it became the country's largest hydroelectric power plant, and remained so until the 1980s.
History
In 1955, just a few years after the creation of the People's Republic of ChinaPeople's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, the Communist government announced a large-scale program of hydroelectric dam construction on the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
. According to the plan, a dam was to be built in each of the Three Gorges of the Yellow River: Liujia Gorge, Yanguo Gorge, and Bapan Gorge. The detailed geological investigation of the area, to choose the most suitable site for the dams, started immediately.
In 1958 construction work started on the first two dams, both located in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture's Yongjing County: the 57-meter high Yanguoxia Dam (in Yangou Gorge, downstream from Liujiaxia) and the 147-meter high Liujiaxia Dam in Liujia Gorge. While the smaller Yanguoxia Dam was completed in 1961, the work on Liujiaxia Dam itself was suspended in 1961-63, and the dam itself was only completed in 1969. The five generators were brought into service, one after another, between 1969 and 1974.
Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao is the current Paramount Leader of the People's Republic of China. He has held the titles of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China since 2002, President of the People's Republic of China since 2003, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission since 2004, succeeding Jiang...
, then a young engineer, joined the project's staff in 1968. Guo Moruo
Guo Moruo
Guo Moruo , courtesy name Dingtang , was a Chinese author, poet, historian, archaeologist, and government official from Sichuan, China.-Family history:Guo, originally named Guo Kaizhen, was born on November 10 or 16, in the small town of Shawan...
visited the site in 1971 and wrote a poem on the occasion.
The reservoirs created by the three-dam cascade (also including Bapanxia Dam (1968-1975) farther downstream) displaced a large number of local farmers. The three reservoirs flooded 118,229 (7,881 hectares) of farmland and displaced 43,829 residents, primarily in Yongjing County. The compensation payments to the farmers affected by the Liujiaxia Dams reportedly averaged 364 yuan per person (but in reality may have been even lower), and were grossly inadequate. It is said that the residents received lower compensation amount than they could otherwise because in 1958, during the Great Leap Forward
Great Leap Forward
The Great Leap Forward of the People's Republic of China was an economic and social campaign of the Communist Party of China , reflected in planning decisions from 1958 to 1961, which aimed to use China's vast population to rapidly transform the country from an agrarian economy into a modern...
, when the Yanguoxia project started, they understated the value of their assets, as they were afraid to be classified as "rich peasants", i.e. class enemies.