Dam's flood capacity 'limited'

Three Gorges project passed test but 'can't handle all flooding'

BEIJING - The flood control capacity of the Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, is designed to be limited, a senior engineer said on Thursday amid mounting concerns over the project's ability to manage floods.

The multi-billion dollar dam was designed to withstand floods with water flow of 83,700 cubic meters per second, covering the Jingjiang River area and the Chenglingji region in Hubei and Hunan provinces, Zhao Yunfa, deputy director of the China Three Gorges Corp's cascade dispatch center, told China Daily.