Three Gorges Dam

The Three Gorges Dam is among the largest and most ambitious construction projects in Chinese history. The dam will harness the flow of the Yangtze—the world’s third-largest river—in central China to control flooding and generate electricity. Construction on this massive project began in 1994 and is scheduled to be completed in 2009. The dam will rank as the largest in the world.

The Three Gorges Dam is sited on the Yangtze River near Yichang in east central China. When completed, the dam will rank as the largest in the world at a height of 200 m (656 ft) and a length of 1.6 km (1 mi).