3 Gorges dam security to be strengthened

Security measures at central China's Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, will be tightened, according to a government rule set to take effect on Oct. 1. The set of regulations dedicated to the project's security was publicized on Monday after Premier Li Keqiang issued an order for the promulgation. Safety control zones will be set for the dam's land area, water area and airspace, respectively, according to the regulations, which also feature categorized arrangements regarding the flow of traffic and personnel around the dam. The flying and setting of sky lanterns, hot air balloons, airships, paragliders, unmanned drones, light helicopters and model aircraft will be prohibited in the dam's airspace control zone, the rule says. Under the regulations, the dam's security protection duties are shared among the public security, transport, and water authorities of the State Council, or the Cabinet, and the entity that manages the dam's operation, in accordance with the law and the administrative rules. The safe operation of the dam is integral to maintaining supplies of electricity for east, central and south China, as well as ensuring the security of the lives and property of the 15 million people who live downstream, according to officials. Construction of the 22.5-billion-U.S.-dollar Three Gorges project began in 1993 and was completed in 2009 in the mid-section of the Yangtze River, China's longest. In a full-capacity storage test, the water level at the dam reached its designed highest mark of 175 meters for the first time in 2010, confirming that the dam's functions met the requirements of design.