China wants to build a 1,000km tunnel to lead water from Tibet to Xinjiang

Chinese engineers are experimenting with technology that could be used to build a 1,000-kilometer tunnel to bring water from Tibet to Xinjiang.

If built, this will be the longest tunnel in the world.

The South China Morning Post quoted experts involved in the project saying the plan would " turn Xinjiang into Tibet". Water will be brought down from the highest plateau in the world.

In August, Chinese authorities also began building a tunnel in central Yunnan province. This tunnel, expected to be more than 600km long, will consist of 60 cutting points, each large enough for two high-speed trains to pass. The tunnel will run through mountains several thousand meters above sea level located on an unstable geological area.

Taklimakan Desert in Xinjiang.(Photo: AFP).

Researchers say the Yunnan tunnel will be a "test" for the technology and equipment of the Tibetan - Xinjiang tunnel. The tunnel will divert the flow of the Yarlung Tsangpo River in southern Tibet and bring water to the Taklimakan Desert in Xinjiang.

The Tibetan Plateau prevented the monsoon from the Indian Ocean reaching Xinjiang. The area is blocked by the Gobi desert in the north and the Taklimakan desert in the south and makes 90% of Xinjiang area unfavorable for human habitation.

However, the Taklimakan desert is located right at the foot of the Tibetan plateau, which is considered the water tower of Asia.

It provides an amount of water equivalent to 400 billion tons per year, enough to fill Lake Erie in the United States. It is the water supply of many large rivers like the Yellow River, Yangtze River, Mekong River and Ganges River.

Yarlung Tsangpo river valley.(Photo: Alamy Stock).

The intention to bring water from Tibet to Xinjiang dates back to the Qing Dynasty in the 19th century. Over the past few decades, Chinese government branches, including the Ministry of Water Resources, have proposed many such plans. dam construction, pumps and tunnels.

However, the huge cost, technical difficulties, the risk of environmental impact and the opposition of neighboring countries have made plans never come true.

Zhang Chuanqing, an expert at the Institute of Soil and Stone Mechanics at the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology in Wuhan, said that China is trying to be quiet in order to gradually implement this plan.

"Yunnan's central water project is a pilot project , " Zhang said. He is an important player in many water tunnel projects in China, including a project in Yunnan.

"It proves that we have brains, hands and tools to build ultra-long tunnels in dangerous terrains and don't let costs go over the ceiling."

"With water from Tibet, Xinjiang will explode like California," Zhang said.

A train runs across the Tianshan Mountains outside the Taklimakan Desert in Xinjiang.(Photo: AFP).

The construction of a tunnel in the Yunnan - Guizhou plateau, the second tallest plateau in China, will help Chinese leaders become more confident about the Tibetan - Xinjiang tunnel.

The cost of building Yunnan tunnel will be about 11.7 billion USD and the time is about 8 years.

Wang Wei, a researcher involved in the drafting of the Tibet - Tay Cuong project, said that more than 100 researchers have joined different groups to study across the country. The draft of this project was submitted to the government in March.

The longest tunnel in China is Dahuofang Tunnel, 85km, built 8 years ago in Liaoning Province. Meanwhile, the world's longest tunnel is a 137-kilometer waterway that runs below New York City.