"Five Years Behind the Three Gorges Dam" In November 2008, China raised the water level behind the Three Gorges Dam to 172.3m, the highest since the dam began operating in 2003. Though there was another 2.7m to go before reaching the water levelís final target of 175m, the government halted the proceedings in renewed cautiousness stemming from repeated warnings by environmentalists and scientists about the impact of billions of cubic metres of water stored behind the dam. This story tracks, over five years, the changes brought to an ancient part of China by a man-made and controversial rising tide.

A resident of China's Shuanglong township stands amid the ruins of houses demolished in anticipation of rising waters in the Yangtze River caused by the operation of the Three Gorges Dam. Behind her is a 3m wall indicating the target water level - 175m - when the dam is fully operational. [Shuanglong township Nov 06 2008]