Three Gorges Dam by Chiang Kai-shek, began preliminary work on plans in the Three Gorges. In 1939, Japanese military forces occupied Yichang and surveyed the area. A design, the Otani plan, was completed for the dam in anticipation of a Japanese victory over China. In 1944, the United States Bureau of Reclamation head design engineer, John L. Savage, surveyed the area and drew up a dam proposal for the 'Yangtze River Project'. Some 54 Chinese engineers went to the U.S. for training. The original plans called for the dam to employ a unique method for moving ships; the ships would move into locks
Three Gorges Reservoir Region for the whole main stream of the Yangtze River. Since the conditions of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region for the development of the water resources are good with a short distance to the load center, there is great potential for development of the water resources. The agricultural resources of the Three Gorges Region are abundant, which are superior for the agriculture, forestry, livestock, sideline production and fishery. The Three Gorges Reservoir Region is proper for the growth of the various plants of both the warm temperate zone and the temperate zone. Dozens of ores have been explored and investigated in