大象传媒

A huge dam built across the Angara River at Irkutsk in Siberia generates hydroelectricity for nearby cities and industries. The Angara provides enough power for the whole of Siberia and there seems to be no limit to the number of industries powered by its dams. While hydroelectric power itself is clean, the industry it supports can cause pollution. An aluminium smelting factory has destroyed vast areas of forest. When dams are built, the surrounding countryside is flooded. Where the trees were not cleared away prior to flooding, they have started to release chemicals into the river, which kills wildlife. The Buryat people have lived for generations in Siberia. Some of the Buryat used to farm on the floodplains of the Angara where the soil was rich. The Bratsk dam created a reservoir which flooded the farms and dramatically altered the lives of the Buryat.