China dam: Tributary brings less than 1 per cent to Brahmaputra, says data
01/10/2016
India may not have reason to be overly concerned about China's plans to dam the Xiabuqu, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, for a major hydropower project, according to available hydrological data.
READ: China blocks Brahmaputra tributary for dam project
The Xiabuqu river has a mean discharge volume that is only 0.15 per cent of the Brahmaputra's average discharge when it enters India, according to available official data.
So the impact of any dam - which will itself not entirely cut off flows as it will be used primarily for hydropower besides irrigation -is likely to be even less, and probably even negligible.
The river, which is 195 km long, flows from Bainang in Tibet northwards and joins the Yarlung Zangbo, as the Brahmaputra is known in China, near Shigatse.
The mean discharge of the river is 25.8 cubic metres per second (cumecs), according to official Chinese data.
This is less than 0.15 per cent of the Brahmaputra's mean discharge when it enters India, which is estimated at more than 19,000 cumecs in lean periods, and 40,000 cumecs in normal periods.
The actual contribution to the river may be even less than that and even negligible, when the run-off in Tibet, as well as the contribution of the catchment area in India, which is thought to account for more than half of the river's flows, is taken into consideration.
STUDY COMMISSIONED
India is commissioning a study to ascertain how much the Yarlung Zangbo, as the Brahmaputra is known in Tibet, actually contributes to flows in India and how much comes from the catchment area in India itself, where the river's flows are consistently measured at much higher volumes than in Tibet. Many experts estimate the Tibet contribution at not more than 40 per cent.
China provides India with hydrological data from May 15 to October 15, which will allow India to closely monitor the river's flows. Both countries also discuss transborder rivers through a joint working group mechanism.
China on Saturday announced it began work on a dam on a tributary of the Brahmaputra, damming the river to construct its "most expensive hydropower project".
The Lalho project on the Xiabuqu river, a tributary of the Yarlung Zangbo as the Brahmaputra is known in China, costs $740 million dollars and construction began in June 2014, the official Xinhua news agency said.
It is scheduled to be completed in 2019, and is aimed at irrigation, flood control and power generation. The reservoir is "designed to store up to 295 million cubic meters of water and help irrigate 30,000 hectares of farmland", Xinhua reported, adding that the farming area, which usually suffers from severe drought, is a major crop production base in Xigaze.
The report said project "will have two power stations with a combined generation capacity of 42 megawatts" and are "designed to generate 85 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each year".
http://m.indiatoday.in/story/china-...tary-xiabuqu-hydropower-project/1/778102.html
01/10/2016
India may not have reason to be overly concerned about China's plans to dam the Xiabuqu, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, for a major hydropower project, according to available hydrological data.
READ: China blocks Brahmaputra tributary for dam project
The Xiabuqu river has a mean discharge volume that is only 0.15 per cent of the Brahmaputra's average discharge when it enters India, according to available official data.
So the impact of any dam - which will itself not entirely cut off flows as it will be used primarily for hydropower besides irrigation -is likely to be even less, and probably even negligible.
The river, which is 195 km long, flows from Bainang in Tibet northwards and joins the Yarlung Zangbo, as the Brahmaputra is known in China, near Shigatse.
The mean discharge of the river is 25.8 cubic metres per second (cumecs), according to official Chinese data.
This is less than 0.15 per cent of the Brahmaputra's mean discharge when it enters India, which is estimated at more than 19,000 cumecs in lean periods, and 40,000 cumecs in normal periods.
The actual contribution to the river may be even less than that and even negligible, when the run-off in Tibet, as well as the contribution of the catchment area in India, which is thought to account for more than half of the river's flows, is taken into consideration.
STUDY COMMISSIONED
India is commissioning a study to ascertain how much the Yarlung Zangbo, as the Brahmaputra is known in Tibet, actually contributes to flows in India and how much comes from the catchment area in India itself, where the river's flows are consistently measured at much higher volumes than in Tibet. Many experts estimate the Tibet contribution at not more than 40 per cent.
China provides India with hydrological data from May 15 to October 15, which will allow India to closely monitor the river's flows. Both countries also discuss transborder rivers through a joint working group mechanism.
China on Saturday announced it began work on a dam on a tributary of the Brahmaputra, damming the river to construct its "most expensive hydropower project".
The Lalho project on the Xiabuqu river, a tributary of the Yarlung Zangbo as the Brahmaputra is known in China, costs $740 million dollars and construction began in June 2014, the official Xinhua news agency said.
It is scheduled to be completed in 2019, and is aimed at irrigation, flood control and power generation. The reservoir is "designed to store up to 295 million cubic meters of water and help irrigate 30,000 hectares of farmland", Xinhua reported, adding that the farming area, which usually suffers from severe drought, is a major crop production base in Xigaze.
The report said project "will have two power stations with a combined generation capacity of 42 megawatts" and are "designed to generate 85 million kilowatt-hours of electricity each year".
http://m.indiatoday.in/story/china-...tary-xiabuqu-hydropower-project/1/778102.html
