Three Gorges Dam murky. In 1997, the Three Gorges area had 10% forestation, down from 20% in the 1950s. Research by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization research suggested that the Asia-Pacific region would, overall, gain about of forest by 2008. That is a significant change from the net loss of forest each year in the 1990s. This is largely due to China's large reforestation effort. This accelerated after the 1998 Yangtze River floods convinced the government that it must restore tree cover, especially in the Yangtze's basin upstream of the Three Gorges Dam. Concerns about the potential wildlife impact of the
Three Gorges Dam 177 voted against, 664 abstained, and 25 members did not vote. Construction started on December 14, 1994. The dam was expected to be fully operational in 2009, but additional projects, such as the underground power plant with six additional generators, delayed full operation until May 2012. The ship lift was completed in 2015. The dam had raised the water level in the reservoir to above sea level by the end of 2008 and the designed maximum level of by October 2010. Made of concrete and steel, the dam is long and the top of the dam is above sea level.