Troubled waters: huge Poyang Lake dam 'back on the agenda'

The government's top economic planning body has discussed controversial plans to build a dam on the mainland's biggest freshwater lake, suggesting that the scheme might be moving closer to approval, according to a provincial official.

The National Development and Reform Commission discussed the Poyang Lake dam project late last month, said Liao Jinyuan, an official at the province's water bureau. The outcome of the meeting is not known.

Environmentalists say the dam in Jiangxi province would destroy the natural ecosystem in the area, which is rich in wildlife.

The idea for the project was first suggested in 2008 to maintain water levels in the lake, which have been falling steadily since the construction of the Three Gorges Dam upstream on the Yangtze River.

The lake project was championed up to last year by the former Communist Party chief in Jiangxi, Su Rong. Su was promoted to vice chairman of the nation's political advisory body in March last year, but was sacked this June after he came under investigation for alleged graft.

Officials in Jiangxi say water is stored behind the Three Gorges Dam during the winter months to power turbines, starving Poyang of supplies. Water levels in Poyang have been dropping since 2003 and in December fell by 7.5 metres, a record low, according to official figures.

The Poyang project would involve building a series of sluice gates along a 3km stretch of the narrowest section of a channel that links the lake to the Yangtze.