Aerial photo taken on Nov. 19, 2019 shows the hydro dam of the Aratax water conservation project at the border of Shache County and Akto County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge)
One more step in taming the most flood-prone river in Xinjiang.
URUMQI, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- The Aratax water conservation project hydro dam, dubbed the "Three Gorges of southwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region" due to its colossal size and complicated construction, has begun to store water.
The dam was built to tame the Yarkant River, according to the construction group. The 1,289-km-long Yarkant River in Tarim Basin is the most flood-prone river in Xinjiang, especially when the snow thaws from the Karakorum Mountain upstream.
Aerial photo taken on Nov. 19, 2019 shows the hydro dam of the Aratax water conservation project. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge)
The towering dam can withstand the turbulent flood water currents and has a reservoir storage capacity of 2.2 billion cubic meters.
Xinhua Hydropower Generation, a subsidiary of China National Nuclear Corp., started construction of the 10.98-billion-yuan (1.5 billion U.S. dollars) water conservation project in 2011.
Aerial photo taken on Nov. 19, 2019 shows the Yarkant River is in the dry season. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge)
The company said the Aratax project will play a substantial role in flood control, irrigation and power generation.
Four million people live along the river and it irrigates over 6.5 million mu (433,333 ha.), which is the largest irrigated area in Xinjiang and the fourth largest in China. ■
