CHONGQING, China — A Chinese official says the planners of the Three Gorges Dam failed to properly gauge its effects on lakes and other bodies of water downstream, according to a report on Thursday in Shanghai Daily, an English-language newspaper.

Levels are dropping at Poyang, one of the two largest freshwater lakes in China, and an official said the dam was partly to blame.

Global food output may be hurt as climate change brings more extreme weather over the next decade, with China likely set for harsher droughts and North America getting heavier rain, said the World Meteorological Organization.

SHANGHAI – China is acknowledging serious troubles with its showcase Three Gorges Dam project, citing an urgent need to curb pollution and do a better job with relocations and disaster management related to the world's biggest hydroelectric project.

A government statement released Thursday outlines a blueprint for a cleaner, safer and more sustainable future for the Three Gorges, a scenic section of the Yangtze River that was dammed to create a 410-mile (660-kilometer) -long reservoir.

The climate inside of the United Nations is changing. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will emphasize the employment of more sustainable fuels without trying to extract firm commitments on carbon reductions.
 
The UN’s leader remains steadfast in his belief that man-made carbon emissions are causing global warming that has the potential to create devastation. But he now realizes that the most practical way to encourage a cleaner environment is to try and facilitate the wider use of green technologies.