dam-l Reuters: June 7, 1999/ 3G Dam-related bridges branded "tofu"

[Doris Shen <threegorges@irn.org>]

 Three Gorges Dam-related bridges branded ``tofu''
    BEIJING, June 7 (Reuters) - Several key bridges erected as part of a
plan to resettle Chinese displaced by the massive Three Gorges Dam project
will have to be rebuilt after inspectors compared them to bean curd, state
media said on Monday. 
   ``'Tofu scum' construction related to Three Gorges resettlement will be
resolutely demolished and rebuilt,'' the Beijing Daily quoted officials in
Hubei province as saying.
    Inspectors in the central Chinese province discovered construction
flaws in 17 of 20 bridges examined along a 14-km (nine-mile) stretch of
highway in Badong county near the site of the unfinished dam.
    ``Related departments have determined that five large bridges with
grave quality problems will be blown up or torn down and rebuilt,'' the
article said.
    Inspectors blamed the inferior quality of the bridges on official
corruption in contract bids, poor planning and supervision, and the
misallocation of one-third of marked funds, it said.
    The inspection, sparked by the collapse of the nearby Jiaojiawan Bridge
in February 1998, was reported after Premier Zhu Rongji called on officials
last month to ensure the smooth resettlement of more than one million
people forced to make way for the dam.
    The dam, scheduled for completion in 2009, would end perennial flooding
along the Yangtze's middle and lower reaches and provide energy for
power-hungry industries.

REUTERS 
Reut05:35 06-07-99 1/31/31/3



_________________________
Doris Shen
International Rivers Network
Three Gorges Campaign
threegorges@irn.org
Tel: 510.848.1155 ext. 317
Fax: 510.848.1155

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