Missing Voices on the Nu River Dam Project

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November 29, 2005
By Yingling Liu

The Nu River dam project, suspended by Premier Wen Jiabao in April 2004 after a heated controversy, got a boost after local officials proposed a smaller-scale project while lobbying the premier during his trip to the Yunnan province in July. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project is currently under review, and will likely get approved in the next month. China's State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) is resolute that this EIA will be publicly disclosed, encouraging a new wave of public participation in the decision-making process.

Among all of the debate so far over the proposed dam, there is one group of stakeholders whose voice is largely unheard: the mostly poor local residents, who currently earn their livelihoods through subsistence farming methods. If the project advances, power companies expect windfall profits and local authorities at various levels anticipate augmented tax revenue—while local farmers will allegedly benefit from the project through job creation and cheaper electricity.

But while a 2003 report commissioned by the Yunnan provincial government predicted that the dam project would bring 440,000 long-term employment opportunities, this forecast is dubious. Furthermore, what portion of jobs actually created by the project will go to farmers, most of whom are members of ethnic groups and short of technical training, remains to be seen: in an interview with the China International Herald Leader , local power authorities said they were expecting 170 new jobs, only 40 percent of which would be filled by local residents. More jobs are promised once the local government gains more tax revenue from power generation, but such opportunities will only materialize a decade or so after the completion of the project.

The proposed benefit of cheaper electricity for local residents also remains to be seen. With most of the electricity to be transferred to the power-thirsty east, little will be left for the farmers, and the experience of others provides a disappointing precedent. For example, a key promise by the local governments in the development of the neighboring Manwan Dam , which started construction in 1986, was to replace firewood with electricity for locals. More than a decade later, after the dam started producing power in 1993, local residents could hardly afford their electricity bill, which reflected the same rates paid by recipients in the much richer east.

While the local benefit from the construction is at best overstated, displaced populations will experience various challenges. According to the initial plan , roughly 60,000 mu (approx. 9,840 acres) of arable land will be submerged, forcing some 50,000 people to relocate. The compensation they are entitled to receive is the standard set previously by the Three Georges Dam project, at 50,000 — 70,000 RMB (5,000 — 8,434 USD) per person. This, so far, has not been secured. Life after relocation is not promising, either. In China, more than half of people relocated as a result of large dam projects are living in poverty, according to China Youth Daily . In addition to the financial plight, many of them also suffer mentally, failing to adapt to a new living environment and a dramatic change in lifestyle.

While some proponents of the project see large-scale hydropower generation as an option for ameliorating pollution from coal-fired power stations and alleviating local poverty, the decision-making process is complicated and sensitive, opaque to the group most concerned. Lacking channels to access information vital for their future and to express their concerns, local farmers have long been passive recipients of any decisions regarding their livelihoods.

There have been signs in recent years that space is opening up for limited public participation in the Nu River dam project. Its evolution shows nascent evidence of participatory decision-making by environmentalists, experts and a small group of concerned citizens in mega-construction projects with huge social and environmental significance. SEPA's resolution to make its EIA public is another encouraging gesture in breaking the monopoly of a few powerful interest groups over the decision-making process. In such development projects, bringing all related parties to the negotiating table—especially the long underrepresented—will likely prolong the project, but any outcome will inevitably maximize the interests of society as a whole.


怒江水电开发中被遗忘的声音- -
                          
Yingling Liu
世界观察研究所之中国观察通讯
2005年11月29日

2004年4月被国务院总理温家宝叫停重审、备受争议的怒江水电开发项目，经过地方官员的游说，并同意减少规模，得到批准的机会提高了。项目环评报告正处于审议阶段，并可能在下月获得通过。国家环保总局坚持有关环评报告将会公开，鼓励了新一轮的公众参与。

在这场大坝的争议，有一个利益相关群体的声音仍然备受忽略－就是当地的贫困农民。一旦项目正式开工，不单电力公司将会获得丰厚盈利，当地政府从中获得大量税收，而当地农民据说也可从新的就业机会和廉价电力得益。

尽管2003年云南省政府委托的调查研究预测水电开发可以带来440,000的长期就业机会，但这些预测不是没有疑点。而且，水电项目所创造出来的就业机会有多少可以落入农民手里，仍然有待观察。大部分农民都是少数民族，而且欠缺技术培训。北京国际先驱导报曾经报导，地方电力局预期水电项目可以制造170个新的职位，但只有四成可以落入当地农民。地方政府承诺一旦发电税收增加，便会提供更多职位，可是这些职位只会在项目完成后十年或以上才可实现。

当地农民可否从廉价电力受惠也是有待观察。事实上，大部分电力都会送到渴求电力的东部地区，而剩下给当地农民的所余无几，况且其他水电站早有前科。例如，地方政府在1986年修建漫湾电站时，曾经许下承诺以水电取代薪柴。不过，水电站在1993年完工后的十多年，当地居民仍然无法负担电价，而同一个电价正是由较富裕的东部地区用户支付。

水电建设的好处被过份夸大的同时，受影响的水库移民却要面对多种的挑战。根据原来的规划，约60,000市亩(或9,840英亩)的可耕种土地将会被淹没，使50,000人被迫迁徙。他们所获得的补偿与长江三峡工程移民一样，就是每人50,000-70,000元人民币(或5,000-8,434元美元)。不过，移民补偿还没有落实。而移民后的生活也没有着落。根据中国青年报报导，超过一半的水库移民仍然活在贫困中。此外，很多水库移民因为不能适应新的居住环境和生活方式，精神大受影响。

一些大型水电建设支持者认为水电是减少燃煤发电污染和解决贫困的方法。不过，决策过程复制而敏感，而且对受影响群体不透明。农民一直是被动的接受者，缺乏了解与他们未来前途相关信息与表达关注的渠道。

不过近年，在怒江水电项目有限的公众参与下，有迹象显示空间正在慢慢扩大。它的演变显示了环保人士、专家和关心大型建设工程带来巨大社会与环境影响的民众，通过积极参与影响决策。环保总局决心公开环评报告，也是打破少数既得利益集团垄断决策过程的正面姿态。在这个开发项目，把所有利益相关者带到谈判桌，尤其是长期备受忽视的群体，无可避免要延长项目的决策过程，但谈判的结果却可以照顾社会各阶层的最大利益。