No Leaks from Three Gorges Dam

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 ◆ No Leaks from Three Gorges Dam

Despite continuous rain since demolition began on a coffer-dam upstream on May 1, no leaks have appeared in the Three Gorges dam.

Engineer said Monday that the 1,600-meter Three Gorges dam has withstood a severe quality test as the prolonged rain which started on May 1 swelled the Yangtze River.

By May 9, the water level behind the dam had reached 68 meters, far above the lower part of its 22 sluice gates. But the dam's superior strength held the water.

Measuring 10 meters high and six meters wide, the sluice gates control the discharge of water.

Also put to the test were the quality of welding and assembly on the sluice gates.

The coffer-dam, 300 meters from the Three Gorges dam, secured the construction of the main dam by easing water pressure against it. Demolition began on May 1 and, with some 3.3 million cubic meters of the coffer-dam already removed, will last until the end of June.

The building of another section of the main dam, about 600 meters long, is expected to begin in November.

Once in use, the Three Gorges Hydroelectric Power Plant will have an installation capacity of 18.2 million kilowatts, making itthe biggest such plant in the world.

It will begin service in 2003.