It originates in the southern slope of the Tanggula Mountain on the Qinghai-
Tibetan Plateau of Qinghai Province. Then it flows through the Gaoligong
Snow Mountain and the Nushan Mountain in the Tibet Autonomous Region
and Yunnan Province, before entering Myanmar (where it is named the
Salween River).^38 The Nu River valley is sometimes referred to as an ‘oriental
Grand Canyon’, because of its pristine beauty and majesty.
The Nu River is one of three rivers (the other two are the Lancang [Mekong]
and Jinsha rivers) which follow a parallel course in the northwestern Yunnan
Province. The Three Rivers Area is a region under the national PA status of the
Chinese government;^39 in 2003, some 1.7 million hectares within the region
were approved as a world heritage site by the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
In addition to its natural beauty, the Nu River Valley and more broadly the
Three Rivers Area are sites of rich ecological and cultural diversity. The area
has endemic animal species composing 25 percent of the global and 50 percent
of the Chinese total, and more than 7000 different plant species. This makes it
an international ‘hotspot’, of extraordinarily rich biological diversity. Further-
more, living in the area are 22 minority nationalities, including the Naxi, Lisu,
Tibetan, Bai, Yi, Pumi, Nu and Dulong ethnic groups. These people live hard
lives, and poverty alleviation is a priority concern of local and national
governments. They depend on the resources of the Nujiang watershed for their
livelihoods, using fisheries as a primary source of protein and nutrients in the
water to sustain vegetable gardens in the dry season and fertilize farmlands.^40
The Nu River is one of only two rivers in China that has never been dammed
(the other is Yarlung Zangbo in the south of the Tibet Autonomous Region).
To some observers, Nujiang is just the latest ‘assault’ on southwest China,
which is the most fertile biodiversity region in China (but also quite poor).
Economic development in the region, and particularly dams and hydropower
development, are the primary threat to rare and endangered species and
habitats^41 One of our respondents put the Nujiang case in context by telling
three brief stories, all based on hearsay:
‘The Three Gorges Dam project and construction of the big dam introduced conflict
with the Ministry of Agriculture. The local government opposed construction of the
dam and wanted to protect its area of responsibility, to no avail. Second, the
boundaries of protected areas are now being adjusted to allow construction of dams.
In the Upper Yangtze area, local people oppose construction of a dam, as there is a
protected area for fish species. Authorities changed the boundary of the core area in
the PA to accommodate dam construction. Third, southwest China has the most
water resources in China and also the most biodiversity; thus potential for conflict
is greatest in this region.’^42Precipitating the Nujiang controversy was planning by the Huadian Group to
build hydroelectric dams in this area. Huadian signed a cooperative agreement
Politics and biodiversity conservation 209