By 2030, about 60% of China's longest river's electricity-producing potential will be harnessed. It is believed that by 2030, that more than 30% of the Yangtze's water resources would be used for agriculture or industry. That's an increase from 17.8% today, in an area likely to see decreasing rainfall in the coming years do to the effects of climate change on precipitation patterns (McDermott, 2005)

All of this rightly raises red flags among environmentalists, especially considering the problems with Three Gorges. A recent study by the Chinese Academy of Sciences found that water quality persists to decline in reservoir areas of Three Gorges, which is causing the fish stocks to decline. Though it's certainly true that hydropower is a better option than profligate burning of coal for China, surely there are more eco-friendly ways to tap into China's world-leading hydropower resources than continued building of large-scale dams (McDermott, 2005)

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