YICHANG, July 5 (Xinhua) -- The Three Gorges Dam Project has started discharging water to lower the water level in the reservoir after excessive rainfall upstream.

    The inflow was 34,500 cubic meters per second at 8 a.m. Saturday, up from 27,000 six hours before. Operators opened six spillways to discharge water of 11,000 cubic meters per second, said Zhao Yunfa, a director of the communication center of China¡¯s largest hydropower project.

    The discharges since Friday night had lowered the water level from 145.91 to 145.78 meters as of 1 p.m..

    It was the first time this year that the reservoir had performed its flood-control function.

    The discharging would continue as more heavy rains were expected on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, Zhao said.

    The world's largest dam, 2,309 meters lo...

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