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The Yalong River ( zh, 雅砻江, p ''Yǎlóngjiāng'', w ''Ya-lung Chiang'',
IPA IPA commonly refers to: * India pale ale, a style of beer * International Phonetic Alphabet, a system of phonetic notation * Isopropyl alcohol, a chemical compound IPA may also refer to: Organizations International * Insolvency Practitioners ...
 ), or Nyag Chu (
Tibetan Tibetan may mean: * of, from, or related to Tibet * Tibetan people, an ethnic group * Tibetan language: ** Classical Tibetan, the classical language used also as a contemporary written standard ** Standard Tibetan, the most widely used spoken dial ...
: , z ''Nyag Qu''), is a major tributary river of the
Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest list of rivers of Asia, river in Asia, the list of rivers by length, third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in th ...
in
Southwest China Southwest China () is a region in the south of the People's Republic of China. Geography Southwest China is a rugged and mountainous region, transitioning between the Tibetan Plateau to the west and the Chinese coastal hills (东南丘陵) and ...
. With a length of , the Yalong River flows from north to south through the Hengduan Mountains in western
Sichuan Province Sichuan (; zh, c=, labels=no, ; zh, p=Sìchuān; alternatively romanized as Szechuan or Szechwan; formerly also referred to as "West China" or "Western China" by Protestant missions) is a province in Southwest China occupying most of the ...
.


Course

The Yalong has its source in the
Bayan Har Mountains The Bayan Har Mountains, formerly known as the Bayen-káras or Bayan-Kara-Ula, are a mountain range in Qinghai Province, northwest China. The name is Mongolian for "Rich and Black". It can be viewed as one of the branches of the Kunlun Mountain ...
on the Tibet–Qinghai Plateau in
Chindu County Chindu County () or Chenduo County () is a county of Qinghai, Qinghai Province, China, bordering Sichuan to the east. It is under the administration of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. Administrative divisions Chindu County (Chenduo County) is ...
, Yushu,
Qinghai Qinghai (; alternately romanized as Tsinghai, Ch'inghai), also known as Kokonor, is a landlocked province in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. It is the fourth largest province of China by area and has the third smallest po ...
, where it is known as the Za Qu ( zh, 扎曲). Flowing southeasterly, the Yalong gradually turns south at Garzê and travels between the
Shaluli Mountains The Shaluli Mountains (), known in Tibetan as Powor Gang, are a large mountain range in western China between the Upper Yangtze (Jinsha) and Yalong Rivers. It is one of the core ranges of the Hengduan group of mountains. The Shaluli Mountains s ...
to the west and the
Daxue Mountains Daxue may refer to: *Daxue (solar term) (大雪), 21st solar term in traditional East Asian calendars *''Da Xue'', or ''Great Learning'' (大學), one of the "Four Books" in Confucianism *Daxue Mountains (大雪山腰), mountain range in western Si ...
to the east. The Yalong River channel runs through a deep gorge for much of its length south of Garzê. The southern Sichuan-Tibet Highway crosses the Yalong at
Yajiang Nyagqu or Nyachukha County (, Nyagchukha, Nyagquka) or Yajiang County (), named after Nyagchukha in Tibetan, is a county of the traditional Kham Region of eastern Tibet. It is currently under the administration of the Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Pre ...
in the middle of the river's course. In
Liangshan Prefecture Liangshan (; Yi: ''Niep Sha'', pronounced ), officially the Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture, is an autonomous prefecture occupying much of the southern extremity of Sichuan province, People's Republic of China; its seat is Xichang. Liangshan ...
, the river wraps around the
Jinping Mountains The Jinping Mountains or Jinping Shan () are a short north-south mountain range in southwestern Sichuan Province, China. The Jinping are located within Yanyuan and Mianning Counties, both in Liangshan Prefecture. This mountain range is notable ...
creating the Jinping Bend. Here, water from the Yalong River has been diverted under the mountains as part of the
Jinping-II Dam The Jinping-II Dam (), also known as the Jinping-II Hydropower Station, is a gravity dam on the Jinping Bend of the Yalong River (Yalong Jiang) in Sichuan, China. Construction on the project began in 2007 and it was complete in 2014. Its hydroe ...
hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...
project. The Yalong meets the main stem of the Yangtze (Jinsha) River in
Panzhihua Panzhihua (), formerly Dukou (), is a prefecture-level city located in the far south of Sichuan province, People's Republic of China, at the confluence of the Jinsha and Yalong Rivers. It has an administrative area of , and a population at the 2 ...
, Sichuan.


History

The upper reaches of the Yalong have traditionally been inhabited by the Tibetan nomads of the historic region of
Kham Kham (; ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being Amdo in the northeast, and Ü-Tsang in central Tibet. The original residents of Kham are called Khampas (), and were governed locally by chieftains and monasteries. Kham ...
. The lower course of the Yalong is deeply incised and is not conducive to human habitation. The lower course of the Yalong was historically the western limit of Chinese influence in region.


Dams

Since the 1980s, the Yalong has been heavily developed for
hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...
power. A total of 23 dams are completed, under construction, or planned for the river. Those dams are listed below from downstream to upstream. * Tongzilin Dam – Under construction, 600 MW *
Ertan Dam The Ertan Dam () is an arch dam on the Yalong River, a tributary of the Yangtze River in Sichuan Province, southwest People's Republic of China, China. The dam has six hydroelectricity, hydroelectric electrical generator, generators, each with ...
– Completed, 3,300 MW * Guandi Dam – Completed, 2,400 MW * Jinping 2 Dam – Completed, 4,800 MW * Jinping 1 Dam – Completed, 3,600 MW *
Kala Dam Kala or Kalo Dam is the dam in the Mayurbhanj district in the state of Odisha, India. It is located 8 km from Kaptipada, Mayurbhanj. The Dam is near about 2 km in length and 3.5 km in breadth. It covers a wide area with plenty of wate ...
– Programmed, 1,060 MW * Yangfanggou Dam – Programmed, 2,200 MW * Mengdigou Dam – Programmed, 1,700 MW * Lenggu Dam – Planned, 2,300 MW * Yagen Dam – Programmed, 1,500 MW * Lianghekou Dam – Completed, 3,000 MW * Gongbagou Dam – Planned, 500 MW * Gongke Dam – Planned, 400 MW * Xinlong Dam – Planned, 500 MW * Yingda Dam – Planned, 500 MW * Tongha Dam – Planned, 200 MW *
Geni Dam Geni or GENI may refer to: * Geni.com, a genealogy-related web service * Geni (footballer) (b. 1980), Spanish football (soccer) player, full name Eugenio Suárez Santos * Global Environment for Network Innovations, a planned National Science Foun ...
– Planned, 200 MW *
Ada Dam Ada may refer to: Places Africa * Ada Foah, a town in Ghana * Ada (Ghana parliament constituency) * Ada, Osun, a town in Nigeria Asia * Adeh, Urmia, Ada, Urmia, a village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Ada, Karaman, a village in Karaman P ...
– Planned, 250 MW *
Reba Dam Reba may refer to: * Reba McEntire, an American country musician and actress ** ''Reba'' (TV series), a sitcom featuring her ** ''Reba'' (album), one of her albums ** '' Reba: Duets'', another one of her albums * Reba (Midianite king), in the H ...
– Planned, 250 MW * Renqingling Dam – Planned, 300 MW * Wenbosi Dam – Planned, 150 MW * Danikanduo Dam – Planned, 7.2 MW * Yangri Dam – Planned, 1 MW


References


External links

* {{Authority control Rivers of Sichuan Tributaries of the Yangtze River