The Chinese government has denied allegations that Beijing\u2019s\nhydropower projects are the cause of the massive flash floods hitting\nthe border regions of Nepal and Tibet.<\/p>\n
Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Guo Jiakun stated\nthat studies by experts and official institutions from both China and\nNepal indicate the disaster was triggered by natural factors. According\nto Guo, the collapse of glaciers in the Nepalese highlands triggered\nlandslides, which subsequently developed into flash floods that swept\nthrough the border areas.<\/p>\n
Guo also condemned the accusations against China\u2019s hydropower\nprojects, calling them baseless. He noted that Beijing is actually\nassisting Nepal in managing the impact of the disaster. \u201cThe Chinese\ngovernment has provided emergency cash assistance and humanitarian aid\nto Nepal, and the first 50 tonnes of disaster relief have been sent to\nKathmandu,\u201d Guo said during a press conference reported by CGTN on\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
In addition to humanitarian aid, China has dispatched rescue teams to\nassist operations in the affected areas. \u201cTwo Chinese tunnel rescue\nexpert teams have also been sent to the affected regions in Nepal. China\nhas also shared critical information with Nepal, including imagery,\nsatellite data, and hydrological data from the affected areas, as well\nas early warnings regarding barrier lakes upstream,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Previously, speculation regarding the cause of the disaster\ncirculated widely on social media. Some netizens suspected that China\u2019s\nmassive hydropower projects in Tibet were linked to the flash floods,\nwhich killed nearly 1,000 people in the Nepal and Tibet regions.<\/p>\n
The project in question is located on the downstream section of the\nYarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet. The infrastructure is designed as five\nhydropower plants operating in a cascade system. Construction of the\nproject is slated to begin in July 2025 and has drawn attention since\nits inception due to its massive scale and its location in the upstream\narea of a river that flows into several parts of South Asia.<\/p>\n
However, Brahma Chellaney, an Indian geostrategist and columnist,\nstated that the disaster was essentially triggered by natural factors\nand was not directly caused by China\u2019s hydropower projects.\nNevertheless, Chellaney assessed that China\u2019s activities in the upstream\nregion and the presence of infrastructure in Tibet have the potential to\nexacerbate the impact of the disaster when water and landslide materials\nmove downstream.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn other words, China\u2019s actions upstream did not cause the glacier\nlandslide but contributed to the severity of the disaster and the\ndownstream chain reaction,\u201d he wrote in a social media post.<\/p>\n
This statement adds to the debate regarding the factors contributing\nto the scale of the disaster in the Himalayan region. On one hand, the\nChinese government maintains that the primary cause of the disaster was\nthe collapse of glaciers, which triggered landslides and flash floods.\nOn the other hand, several observers question the impact of construction\nactivities and changes in hydrological conditions in the upstream area\non downstream regions.<\/p>\n
China has reaffirmed its commitment to assisting Nepal in disaster\nmanagement, including through humanitarian aid, the dispatch of experts,\nand the exchange of data and information regarding the conditions of the\naffected areas.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/china-denies-hydropower-projects-trigger-flash-floods-in-nepal-tibet-1788238381", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }