China authorizes controversial hydropower projects in landslide-prone areas in Tibet – Earth State

In late December, China approved the world’s largest hydropower project, citing economic interests and needs to switch to renewable energy. However, opponents believe that frequent natural hazards in the region pose risks to the project and the surrounding Tibetan communities and the countries downstream of India and Bangladesh.

The Motuo hydropower project is China’s goal to reach its carbon emission peak by 2030. Although China remains the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter, it has also led to the development of renewable energy projects, investing $890 billion in hydro, solar and wind power in 2023 alone, as it quickly shifted coal-fired power from 2023. The Motuo project is expected to generate three times the energy of the Three Canyon Dam on the Yant River, which currently produces the largest electricity in any hydropower project in the world, providing electricity to 700,000 to 80 million Chinese homes each year.

According to Global Infrastructure Consulting Services 2050, Philippe Benoit, a former auxiliary research scholar at Colombia’s Center for Global Energy Policy, said that this energy is particularly important to China, and like other developing countries, it is expected that, besides seeing an increase in energy demand, besides growth, in addition to growth. [seeking to meet] Their decarbonization goals. ”

China also claims that the reservoir behind Motuo station will help alleviate water shortages on the Tibetan plateau, where communities rely closely on glacier fusion expectations for water scarcity due to climate change and glacier retreat.

However, the project has caused controversy due to its location. The station is expected to be built on the Great Bend, the horseshoe-shaped part of the world’s deepest land canyon, known as the Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon in Tibet. Located on the Tibetan Plateau north of the border between China and India, the canyon is three times longer and 37 miles longer than the Grand Canyon in the United States. It is formed by tectonic interactions between India and Eurasian plates, but these interactions and climate change now threaten the existence of hydropower projects on the river.

As glaciers in the basin shrink in response to climate change, the frequency along the river is higher. In March 2021, the glacier collapse caused a huge landslide, with an estimated 100 million tons of rock and ice (equivalent to the mass of 302 Empire State buildings). Debris blocked the Yarlung Tsangpo River above the big bend and caused the water level to rise more than 10 meters or more than three levels. In October 2018, a series of glacial landslides in the basin temporarily blocked the river and flooded the valley. In both cases, emergency evacuation prevented death, but floods still damaged infrastructure.

These events have raised concerns that future landslides may produce waves, and if concrete debris, landslide materials and a large amount of reservoir water floods the canyon, it can damage new dams and cause devastating downstream effects. Glacier melting in the area is increasing the frequency of these landslides, and even if the project is successfully built, the project is at a huge risk.

In addition to natural hazards, the construction of the dam and the resulting reservoirs could lead to flooding and displacement of Tibetans and entire towns, although China has not yet released these estimates. In an interview with Glacierhub, Bryan Tilt, an anthropology professor at Oregon State University, studied China’s dams and development, highlighting that the resettlement of infrastructure projects is “a controversial social and political issue in China today.” “When you add that this is a racial Tibetan area where there is already political tension, it has the potential to increase conflict,” said the tilt.

The three smaller canyon dams have moved 1.4 million people, although estimates vary, the Chinese government has relocated thousands of Tibetans to build the gangtuo dam on the Jinsha River, known as the Kamtok dam on the Tibetan river, about 1,000 kilometers and about 1,000 kilometers to the north of Yarlung Tsangpo. In early 2024, villagers and Buddhist monks protested against the planned Kamtok reservoir, which is expected to flood villages and sacred monasteries, including the 700-year-old Wontoe monastery, which contains rare Buddhist murals. Authorities quickly cracked, beat and arrested protesters, although many Tibetans and organizations still boycotted these hydropower projects in order to violate their autonomy.

In addition to domestic conflicts, the dam will also be built in a transboundary basin known for its tense border relations, just the upper reaches of the Indian country of Arunachal Pradesh, where the rivers are called Xi’ange or Dihong. In the south, in most parts of India, the river is called Brahmin. Ultimately, the body of water flows into Bangladesh as the Jamuna River. Officials in India and Bangladesh also disapprove of the authorized Motuo hydropower project, citing concerns over China’s water supply and water data sharing.

In response to the Motuo hydropower project, India threatened to build a dam in Brahmin Muputra. “This happens a lot when you have a crossover river and a country builds a dam; it’s a bit like Spurs competition,” Tilter explained. India claims that the dam will help protect their water supply and their economy, but it can further put Jamuna’s water supply in Bangladesh at risk.

The approval of the Motuo hydropower project raises bigger questions about how countries around the world respond to climate change and build renewable energy projects while mitigating risks to local communities.

“From a climate change perspective, this is what we want China to do, right? We want them to transfer coal from coal to cleaner sources, and the source of hydroelectric power is a cleaner source,” Benoit explained. “But you have to find the right balance because the local population will be disproportionately affected.”

With the development of the Motuo hydropower project, there is little recognition of the investment from local communities and downstream countries, and concerns about natural hazards, displacement and water supply remain unresolved.

Author’s Note: The cross-border river approved for the construction of the Motuo Hydraulic Project is known as the Yarlung Tsangpo of Tibet, in the controversial Siang/Dihang of Arunachal Pradesh State, Brahmaputra of India and Jamuna of Bandladesh. In this article, all names are used according to which part of the river in question.

Jenna Travers is a long-time Glacierhub writer and is also at Oregon State University Water conflict management and transformation Postgraduate courses. This post is the first in a series covering glacier and water conflicts on its summit project.