"Our Father River": Update from China's Nu River

Little girl from Nu minority at a Tibetan river ritual.
Little girl from Nu minority at a Tibetan river ritual.
Stephanie Jensen-Cormier

Though the Nu River, the last free-flowing river in China, remains undammed on its mainstream, it’s a different story on its tributaries.

More than 100 small hydro dams – defined as 50 MW or less in China – clog the river’s tributaries, which has a significant impact on its overall health. The dams block migratory fish and disrupt critical breeding habitat, and they trap sediment upstream, which can lead to increased erosion on the mainstream of the river.

Small hydro on the Nu River.
Small hydro on the Nu River.
Stephanie Jensen-Cormier

The good news is that regional leaders are realizing what an ecological gem they have in the Nu, and they’re taking steps to protect it. In March, the Yunnan provincial government announced that it would build no more small hydropower projects on the Nu’s tributaries and that it will promote the Nu River Canyon National Park.

In March, we headed down the river on a seven-day road trip that we organized to coincide with the International Day of Action for Rivers. We had 11 environmentalists with us from domestic and international NGOs, as well as media.


During our trip, we met with local people who live along the river, most of them from the Lisu, Nu and Tibetan minorities. The Nu people say that the Nu River is their father river, because of its aggressive and fast flow. They call the Dulong River their "mother river," because it flows more softly and gently. Both rivers are important to their identity, and as we traveled, we were pleased to participate in local rituals and festivities that center around the river.

Nu people participating in an annual ritual at Taohua (Peach Flower) Island.
Nu people participating in an annual ritual at Taohua (Peach Flower) Island.
Stephanie Jensen-Cormier

As we traveled down the length of the Nu, we found significant interest in plans to create a national park system in the Nu area and to encourage ecotourism. The Nu prefecture government is building an airport in Liuku, the capital city of the prefecture, and a lot of new roads are under construction. 

Although we considered the impact of early-stage construction on the region because of the new decision – such as unplanned home building along the river and large-scale road construction – we think creating a national park system for the Nu is a great first step.

The ceremonial leader at the ritual on Peach Flower Island.
The ceremonial leader at the ritual on Peach Flower Island.
Stephanie Jensen-Cormier

Now our team is focused on ensuring that these plans really do promote sustainable development and strengthen conservation in the area. And most importantly, we want to confirm that big hydropower plans will be struck from the Nu region’s development plan as soon as possible.

The 12th Five Year-Plan, which guided China’s economic and social development from 2011-2015, had included five large dams on the Nu River. These were never built. Just last week, one of our partners informed us that none of the dams figure in the latest version of the 13th Five-Year Plan, which will serve as China’s blueprint from 2016-2020.

We’re looking forward to seeing some new development strategies for the Nu prefecture, such as ecotourism, to replace plans for hydropower development.

More information: 

In case you missed the short musical video released by Xinhua News which explains the 13th FYP: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/11958034/Chinese-Co...

Date: 
Monday, May 9, 2016