Chapter 69 Chapter 68
It is said that if tourists who come to Hangzhou want to find a nearby place to enjoy themselves after playing, the best choice is Qiandao Lake.Although it was a rumor, generally speaking, the organizers of the activities organized in Hangzhou would indeed arrange it this way.It’s only an hour’s drive from Hangzhou to Qiandao Lake, and there are beautiful and delicious meals along the way; if you go back by water and pass through Meicheng, Qililong, and Fuchun River, you can say that you are in the painting and have a panoramic view of the scenery. Many people who have experienced it say that Well worth the trip.The reputation of Qiandao Lake is growing day by day.
The uniqueness of Qiandao Lake lies in its water.Although there are mountains that complement each other, and there are also legends that compete for it, but the most memorable thing is the vast expanse of blue lake.Qiandao Lake is rich and sweet, which is like a gift from God in the eyes of the world.As far as its origin is concerned, this is of course true, but such a vast amount of water is not inherent in Qiandao Lake, or in other words, it is because of this water that it converges into a Qiandao Lake, and the water It is not naturally gathered, but artificially developed and managed.Qiandao Lake is an artificial lake.
Presumably, most tourists who have been to Qiandao Lake do not pay much attention to its formation, just like tourists by the West Lake do not care whether it used to be a bay or a reef.The age of vicissitudes is too long, but it is worth mentioning, but Qiandao Lake has only been formed for half a century. As one of the contemporary achievements of China's water conservancy construction, knowing that it is the reservoir area of Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station is not enough to perceive its significance. .Chinese people have a long history of water control, just like the upper reaches of Qiandao Lake, the Xin'an River full of vitality and sense of history...
I saw a Xinhua News Agency telegram, which said that more than 800 years ago, facing the pond water drawn from the Xin'an River, Zhu Xi, the great philosopher of the Southern Song Dynasty, couldn't help but sighed, "Ask where the canal is so clear, because there is a source of fresh water." .The reporter did not intend to talk about Zhu Xi, so the quotation is far-fetched.The title of the original work is "Two Poems with Feelings from Viewing Books". The first two sentences of the first one are "a half-acre square pond is opened, and the sky, clouds and shadows linger together", and the last two sentences are quoted above.However, this "half-acre square pond" refers to the "half-acre pond" in Zheng's Villa in Youxi, Fujian [later Nanxi Academy].
However, it is not that Zhu Xi has nothing to do with Xin'anjiang.Although Zhu was born in Youxi, his ancestral home was in Wuyuan, and now it belongs to Jiangxi, but earlier it belonged to Huizhou, in Anhui.Huizhou was called Xin'an in ancient times, and the rich and beautiful Huizhou culture is also called Xin'an culture, including Xin'an science, annals, medicine, simple science, Xin'an architecture, education, painting, art, food, and folk crafts, etc.People in Huizhou often use "Xin'an" as their title, and Zhu Xi called himself "Xin'an Zhu Xi".The Xin'an River originated in Huizhou, so the river named Xin'an has the same ancestry with Zhu Xi.
Xin'an River is an extraordinary river, and it is also a river that cannot be described in words.
It is said that she is extraordinary in her momentum.This river originated from the Liugu tip of Huangshan Mountain in Xiuning County, Anhui Province. It was originally named Fengcun River, Dayuan River, and Shuishui. They are all simple and beautiful, exuding natural gas. After flowing eastward to Pukou in She County, it was called Xin'an River. Also known as Huigang and Shegang, the confluence of rivers into rivers, the gathering of water into ports, and the posture has come out; and then enter Chun'an and Jiande counties of Zhejiang Province, which are under the jurisdiction of ancient Yanzhou, from the southeast. , resulting in a particularly large slope of the river bed and turbulent water flow, and finally formed the momentum of "one beach after another, each beach ten feet high; three hundred and sixty beaches, Xin'an is in the sky", and the road is heroic.
It's hard to say what she said, because of her water condition.Xin'an River is a perennial river of mountain stream type, with abundant water reserves, not only does it not have seasonal dryness, but also the water quality is crystal clear no matter how deep or shallow it is.Meng Haoran's generalization of "the lake passes through the Dongting is wide, and the river enters Xin'an is clear", which means that the Xin'an River is so clear that it is unique in the world; Li Bai's praise all the way: "The clear stream clears my heart, and the color of the water is different from other waters. Ask Xin'an River to see the bottom How so. People walk in the mirror, and the bird is in the screen." It is almost a tour guide for Xin'anjiang travel, which is fascinating to read.The water conditions of the Xin'an River, first, there are many beaches and thick water, and second, the texture is excellent, as Yang Wanli said: "The springs come from the bones of the mountains without mud, and the jade gargles and the flowers make the sound of adornment."
Nearly 30 years ago, I went to Hefei to participate in a pen meeting of "Anhui Literature". After the meeting, I first went up to Huangshan, then down to Shexian County, and then hired a big wooden boat to float on the water, and I walked on the Xin'an River .Looking back now, the joy of the river was like something calling her in front of her.I stayed overnight in Shendu, a small town at the border of Anhui and Zhejiang. From here I entered Zhejiang and saw a vast expanse of water, which was Qiandao Lake. This was the first time I saw it and also the first time I visited it.
After Shendu and Changyuan River merged into one, Xin'an River flowed into Qiandao Lake, and the lake water flowed down from the Xin'an River Dam to become another river.Anhui people don't think this is also Xin'anjiang.In the eyes of Anhui people, Qiandao Lake is the end of Xin'an River.But the Zhejiang people still call her Xin'an River, and think that the river below the Xin'an River Reservoir is commonly known as Xin'an River. The purpose of changing Germany to Xin'anjiang City was to increase the city's popularity. Although it failed, it did not prevent Jiande from displaying the slogan "Dream Xin'anjiang" on the huge billboards in the urban area of Hangzhou. For humans, there is obviously an unquestionable temptation.
In fact, as early as the beginning of 1957, due to the construction of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station, Xin'anjiang District, equivalent to the county level, was established here. municipality.Now Xin'anjiang Town is gone, and it has become Xin'anjiang Street.In fact, whether it is a district, a town, or a street, Jiande people will play the card of Xin'anjiang.The Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station is right in front of their eyes, and they can see the magnificent dam, and the clear stream passing by the city. For them, no matter what others think, this place should be called Xin'anjiang!
To be more specific, the so-called "others" are Anhui people, and more specifically, they are Huizhou people, those real Xin'anjiang people.Now, when they stand by the deep water and look at the vast Qiandao Lake in the distance, their hearts are full of nostalgia for the Xin'an River, and a sense of confusion that is fading away.In the hearts of Huizhou people, Huizhou merchants who were once famous all over the world are connected with this river.They sailed boats along the river, ups and downs all the way, from the ancient basin with splendid yellow flowers and numerous archways to Hangzhou, Suzhou, Yangzhou, Shanghai...
Imagine the deep crossing hundreds of years ago, the pier was like a forest of sails and masts, and the river bank was full of people.Before the Xin'an River Dam was built, there were many shoals on that section of the river, and the boat's journey was dangerous.The harsh natural environment is just one of them, and the anxiety about the uncertain future is the lingering demon.Shendu is the last crossing of the Xin'an River in Huizhou. Huizhou people who are about to leave, there are two things that are not allowed to be brought on board. One is fennel, and the other is radish. Now, in their hearts, it is only natural to say that this is the end of Xin'an River.
But Zhejiang people are different. Most of their trips to Xin'an River are up, along the Fuchun River and Tong River, passing Meicheng to Tunxi.As Cao Juren wrote: "Above Jiande, there are seventy large and small beaches, and the most famous ones are Coal Beach and Mi Beach; these two beaches stretch for about five miles, and more than a dozen small boats sailed up together, carrying them one by one. ...The distance between Jiande and Tunxi is only 150 kilometers, and it takes fifteen or six days to get on the boat." In 1934, Yu Dafu, a native of Fuyang, must have traveled along this waterway to Tunxi. The poems he wrote that year are still engraved today. On the platform beside the Tunxi old bridge: "Xin'an River is clear and long, and people on both sides of the river are scattered like boats. A few nights of dreaming under the Tunxi Bridge, the heartbroken spring looks like Yangzhou." Zhejiang literati are different from Huizhou businessmen, dreaming of Xin'an River The meaning, then the signs can be seen.
Xin'an River can really be called a dreamland, from Pukou to Jiekou, the so-called "Shanshui Gallery".In Yuliang Town, a little above Pukou, there is a well-known "Song of Water Journey", which is well-known to Hui people.
The magnificence of the 600-mile waterway and the superposition of dangerous shoals are the essence of Xin'an River.The same thing as any water vein is that she also needs to be governed. If it is allowed to spread freely, disasters will inevitably occur.Xin'an River is also flooded. According to legend, when He Pu, the national teacher of the Southern Tang Dynasty, demoted Xiu Ning to the county magistrate, he led the people to move the county to a higher place to avoid the flood of Xin'an River.After all, the legend is a legend, but the flood control person in the memory of Huizhou people, represented by the scholar Dai Zhen, should be conclusive.
Dai Zhen, a native of Longfu, Tunxi, is a great master of modern thought circles. Geography, mathematics and water conservancy, etc.It is rainy in the south of the Yangtze River, and the accumulated water becomes waterlogged. When the mountain floods, the Xin'an River will overflow. During the flood season every year, there will be no shortage of Tianmo houses in Tunxi, and the people will complain.Dai Zhen's home was built along the Hengjiang River. Usually, when he overlooks the water, he always sees the reeds swaying, the river and the sky are all the same color, and his thoughts and knowledge are all sensitive and vivid. Once the flood is raging, how can he sit still?Simply survey the site and practice water conservancy.
Dai Zhen's achievements in water conservancy are mainly the construction of Zhutang Dam in Tunxi, which is 10 meters high, 22 meters wide, and 43 meters long at the top. The stone seal is a gate, and a ditch is opened at the bottom of the dam to guide water, which can not only be used for breeding and irrigation, but also can discharge floods and avoid waterlogging.As a model of promoting water conservancy with science more than two hundred years ago, Zhutang Dam still stands in Tunxi.
It is said that in 1965, Vietnamese state leader Ho Chi Minh, accompanied by Dong Biwu, went to Tunxi, saw Zhutang Dam on the spot, and greatly praised it.When Ho Chi Minh came to Tunxi, he probably did not intend to visit Zhutangba specifically. As for whether he was traveling on the Xin’an River or climbing Huangshan Mountain, it is inconvenient to speculate.But at that time, the Xin'an River Hydropower Station had already been built. Among the water conservancy constructions in the Xin'an River Basin, it undoubtedly attracted the world's attention. It not only changed the shape of the Xin'an River, but also changed its ecology. Ho Chi Minh may have visited the hydropower station.After looking at the Xin'anjiang Dam and Zhutang Dam, the two are separated by two hundred years, a big river that has been flowing for an unknown number of years, and it is almost completely reborn.
It is not accurate to say that it is reborn.As far as the relationship between Xin'anjiang and human beings is concerned, there is no change in essence.But where people and water coexist, there is water first, and then there are people. The people of Xin'an River and Huizhou, and the people of Xin'an River and Zhejiang West are of course the same.The desolation and confusion of Huizhou people going to Xin'an, and the romantic and unrestrained Xin'an people from western Zhejiang are nothing more than an expression of their hydrophilic psychology. Just like human beings' expectations for water, they are also full of longing for Xin'an River in order to go further. harmony.
Xin'anjiang can do this, as long as people can truly make the best use of the situation.
Xin'an River has been waiting for a long time. Dai Zhen's Zhutang Dam two hundred years ago was just a small test of human beings. As the largest water conservancy construction in the history of the river, the birth of the Xin'an River Hydropower Station turned it from passion and self-willedness to gentleness and open-mindedness. , although it was cut off at the middle, it obeyed the arrangement of human beings, and took the embrace of the 100-meter dam as a station in the long-distance rush, where energy was accumulated, passion was released, and when starting again, it created for the world. Ideal and wonder.Xin'an River is a river with spirituality. Its unusual flow may have given human beings a space to explore their own potential wisdom. During the long wait, it wants to know which position is the most suitable to show itself Another side, another state.
This is where the Xin'an River Hydropower Station is located. It is located in Jiande in the west of Zhejiang Province. The water conservancy project is synchronized with the entire construction of New China. The surveys of the Xin'an River are like the silent communication between people and the river, in order to reach a tacit understanding. An Jiang knew that its new situation was about to be revealed here.
The dam site of the Xin'anjiang Dam is called Tongguan Gorge, which, as the name suggests, is a canyon.What her original topography was like is no longer visible, but it can be known from the records that there is a village on each side of the canyon, which is divided by azimuth and called East Tongguan Village and West Tongguan Village. Surrounded by mountains and rivers, guarding the Xin'an River that passes through the canyons.
I have seen a black-and-white photo taken in 1958. In the early summer, there are four people in the photo. The two in the front are foreigners, one is wearing a peaked cap, the other is wearing a rattan helmet, and the two behind are supposed to be Chinese. , all wear hard hats.The caption below the picture reads: Experts from the GDR stood on the hillside of the Tongguan dam site and looked at the West Tongguan Village on the opposite bank.Following their eyes, they saw a group of houses scattered on the river beach. They were low and old. It must be seen from the opposite hill, and Dongtongguan Village probably looked like this.
When this photo was taken, the construction of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station had already started. This canyon is where the reservoir dam will be built. Both Tongguan villages in the east and west will be submerged, but there should still be people living in the village at that time. .It's a pity that the photo is too small to see whether there are villagers walking around in the distant Xitongguan Village, and whether the last cooking smoke is still faintly wafting.
The dam site of Xin'anjiang Reservoir was determined in early November of 1955.On the morning of the 2nd of the month, Li Rui, then director of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station Site Selection Committee, read out a "Draft Resolution". He said it was a draft, but the wording was very positive. The third article stated: "...Xin'anjiang The upper section of the Tongguan dam section finally selected by the Hydropower Station Dam Site Selection Committee will be used as the dam section for the preliminary design of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station, so as to further explore and determine the final dam axis. There is no need to conduct research on other dam sections." From the facts after the fact Looking at it, this means that the location of the Xin'anjiang Reservoir Dam in Tongguan Gorge is a foregone conclusion.
It is said that the place where the meeting was held was in the meeting room of the Tongguan geological team, and Xitongguan Village is the base of the geological team, so it can be said to be on-site office. Therefore, the villagers of Xitongguan Village may not only know the new Anjiang wants to build a hydropower station, and he also knows that the dam of the hydropower station will be built in the village where they have lived for generations.Anxiety about leaving their homeland is understandable, but they have no choice.
I once saw a post on the Internet saying that the location of the Xin'anjiang Reservoir was originally set at the intersection, but a design expert secretly changed the drawing and moved it to Tongguan, Jiande.It is said that this expert is from Anhui, and he took the risk to preserve a large area of fertile land and historic sites in Huizhou, but he himself was arrested and sentenced, and so on.The post is nonsense at first glance, and many followers also said that this statement is groundless.But the appearance of this post cannot be said to be completely groundless, because there is indeed a saying that has been circulated among Xin'anjiang immigrants for many years, saying that the chief designer of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station is from Anhui, and the original dam site is at the intersection of Anhui. With a swipe of the pen, he moved down a hundred miles.In addition, in the thirty-fifth year of the Republic of China, that is, in 1946, the Kuomintang government had a plan to build the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station, and the site was selected at Jiekou, so it is unknown where the rumors came from.Interestingly, the director of the Qiantang River Water Conservancy Survey Office in the Nationalist Government and the later technical director in charge of the design and construction of the Xin'an River Hydropower Station were the same person, named Xu Qiashi, who was originally from Yixing, Jiangsu.
The plan to build a hydropower station on the Xin'an River was the first major project after the founding of New China, and the initial work was carried out in secret.For example, the "Report on the Development of Hydropower Resources of the Xin'an River" co-written by three people including Xu Qiashi [the other two are Zhang Tiezheng and Wang Baoji] is a top-secret document.It was this confidential document formed in June 1952, which was approved by the state leaders Chen Yun and Li Fuchun who were formulating the first five-year plan after being reported to the State Council by the Economic Committee of the East China Bureau, and included in the key infrastructure projects.However, the address for building the site in that report was still Luotongbu.
Why was it later changed to Jiande Tongguan?
It is unbelievable to say that when the Xin'an River was being developed and utilized in 1952, there was only a five-member team for relevant geological exploration, and the main data accumulation was limited to ground surveys.Building a large-scale hydropower station with such a weak foundation really requires the courage to "dare to think and do".Although spiritual power was not lacking in that era, blind risks also existed almost at the same time. Fortunately, a group of geological and hydropower experts sent by the Soviet Union soon came.When I was in junior high school, there seemed to be an article "The Dnieper River Hydropower Station" in my Chinese textbook. I don't remember what it was, but among the Soviets who came to aid in the construction of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station, some participated in the construction of the Dnieper River Hydropower Station. Geological expert Kavaryev and hydrological expert Ruchikin and others.
The participation of Soviet experts is of course a symbol of "Sino-Soviet friendship", but it does not rule out the challenge and temptation brought about by the charm of Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station itself.The Dnieper River Hydropower Station located near the city of Zaporozhye in Ukraine [it was still a republic of the Soviet Union at the time] was built in 1927 and completed in 1939. During the Great Patriotic War, it was blown up in order to prevent the Nazis from obtaining electricity, and it was rebuilt after the war. The restoration project was not completed until 1950, two years before Soviet experts came to China.Although the completion of the Dnieper Hydropower Station was hailed as one of the greatest achievements of Soviet industrialization and the largest hydropower station in the world at that time, its dam height was 60 meters and its installed capacity was 560,000 kilowatts. The dam is over 100 meters high and has an installed capacity of 670,000 kilowatts. As an expert in hydropower construction, it is impossible not to be tempted, not to mention that Xin'an River is such a beautiful and legendary river.
The geological exploration of the Xin'an River Basin began to be re-arranged.Soviet experts believed that to build such a large-scale hydropower station, it is not enough to simply survey the ground, and a large-scale geological drilling is also required.They proposed, of course, the geological prospecting procedures for hydroelectric power projects in the Soviet Union, but scientific principles and methods do not respect national boundaries. In the absence of experience, we can only learn and explore to accumulate our own system.So the newly formed geological team started a comprehensive survey from Anhui, the upper reaches of the Xin'an River, to Jiande, Zhejiang, the lower reaches of the Xin'an River, in order to find the most technically reliable and economically reasonable dam site.
The new round of reconnaissance is extensive and detailed, covering everything from mountains, geology to water flow, and there are as many as 51 hydrological survey points along the river alone.In this way, Tongguan Gorge entered the design plan, but even though she has been favored as a whole, local defects can not be ignored: "This section of Tongguan Gorge is a beautiful place no matter in terms of terrain or geological structure. High dams can be built, and the conditions are superior to those of the Luotongbu section. However, there are also geological shortcomings in the Tongguan section, mainly because of small stones and broken belts. The physical properties and compressive and shear strength of the rocks need further tests. Tongguan Whether the left bank is leaking has not yet been clarified..." Engineer Gu Dezhen's words are enough to represent the rigor and meticulousness of the dam site selectors.
It should be said that the previous Luo Tongbu was also a good choice.In the 1946 national government's development plan for Xin'an River hydropower, there were 6 designated locations including Jiekou, and Luotongbu was one of them. The "Plan Summary" stated that it was "suitable for the development of hydropower dam sites".However, the re-survey results of the new China builders indicated in the "Draft Resolution" of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station Site Selection Committee: "...in terms of engineering geological conditions, the Luotongbu dam section is not as good as the Tongguan dam section." Visible Tongguan Gorge The dam site was selected based on better geological conditions than Luotongbu, and it has also been fully technically demonstrated. There are no human factors, and there are no mysteries.
The name of Tongguan began in the Qin Dynasty. "Yuanfeng Jiuyu Zhi" contains: "Tongguan Mountain, eighty miles west of the city...in the Qin Dynasty, officials were placed here to mine copper." The "city" here refers to the ancient Yanzhou Prefecture Zhimeicheng, because its location is The place where Jiande and Chun'an are linked is also mentioned from the aspect of Chun'an, such as "Yan Shu Leiyao": "Muzhou, Tongguan Mountain, where officials were placed here in Tang Dynasty to mine copper." Chronicles or unofficial history, there are many There are similar records.During the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty, Huizhou merchant Ye Zhongjun also mined limestone here.Tongguanshan is rich in mineral resources, and the decision to locate the dam site of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station here also depends on weighing the economic advantages and disadvantages before making a decision.
From Zhujiabu in Jiande, along the Panshan Highway, you can reach Linghou Village.It was introduced that "the area around the back of the mountain is rich in mineral resources. In the Qin Dynasty, officials were established to mine copper. Around the Tang Dynasty, villages were formed. In 1925, it was Tongguan Village, Xiyang Township, Jiande County, and in 1951, it was Tongguan Village, Xitongguan Township... ..." The location of Linghou Village is behind Tongguan Mountain, while the West Tongguan Village was in the west of Tongguan Gorge near Xin'an River, which has become the underwater memory of Qiandao Lake.How the two evolved will be revealed by a history of the village. What we know now is that Linghou Village is surrounded by peaks, accompanied by islands and lakes, and the beauty of the water and mountains is unparalleled. The mining of various minerals, tourism and industrial output value have increased year by year, making it listed as the richest village in Jiande.
The construction of Xin'anjiang Reservoir Dam changed Tongguan Gorge.In the minds of our generation, her marvelous landscape of two walls facing each other and a river rushing in the past is very mysterious, but now that it is submerged in the bottom of Qiandao Lake, it is even more a mystery.Imagine the former Xin'an River, after passing through one steep river bed after another, what kind of life form was condensed by the natural drop of 100 meters, has Tongguan Canyon really disappeared?Someone wrote: "When Qiandao Lake was not Qiandao Lake, the river in this area was always as elusive as a girl. But now, when Qiandao Lake was formed because of the Xin'an River Reservoir, Xin'an River has gradually changed from a girl to a girl. After leaving the mother, the river slowly disappeared here, she first became deep and quiet, and then she became wider." The thousand-year-old gorge has also become complicated and confusing.
However, Tongguan Gorge still exists. Among the existing scenic spots in Qiandao Lake, she has a new common name called "Valley of Lovers", which is quite popular among fashionable men and women.There are secluded valleys, green peaks, and chirping birds. Among them, there is the lucky island marked "the first island in Humen", and there are poem steles engraved with love chants from past dynasties. The modern elements are clear, but the traces of history are still vague. The Copper Temple across the two peaks is just a symbolic building. After all, the ancient plank road entwined with vines still retains the atmosphere of copper mining craftsmen.
As the final dam site of Xin'anjiang Reservoir, it seems that Tongguan Gorge is almost natural. Although there were many difficulties and dangers during the construction of the dam, in the fifty years since its completion, it has always shown The expected results are very good. Today's Tongguan Gorge, the shape of the mountain, the dam body and the water potential, have been integrated into one, and it has become another vivid portrayal of important water control projects in the past and present in the land of Zhejiang.
In the history of water control in China, Zhejiang undoubtedly plays a pivotal role.Although this province of "seven mountains, two waters and one field" seems to give people a feeling of showing mountains but not showing water, but in ancient times, she had a deep memory of water, such as Tongji on the Songyin Plain in southwestern Zhejiang. weir.
But when it comes to water control, we must talk about Dayu.The legend of Dayu is well known throughout the country, and there are historical sites in many places that are said to be the site of Dayu's water control, but he was buried in Shaoxing, Zhejiang after his death.The Mausoleum of Dayu, including the Mausoleum of Yu, the Temple of Yu, the Temple of Yu, as well as buildings and cultural relics such as the Stele and Stone Pavilion, is grand in scale and majestic.Dayu was born in Mianyang, Sichuan, specifically, in Qiang Township of Beichuan County, which is in the same place as the world-famous ancient water conservancy project Dujiangyan.Coincidentally, in Zhejiang, where he was buried, there is also such a project, which is the Tongji Weir on the Bihu Plain in Southwest Zhejiang.
This is a water conservancy project mainly for irrigation and storage, and it was built in the fourth year of Xiaoliang Tianjian in the Southern Dynasty [AD 505].The whole building is composed of dams, intake gates, stone channels, Taosha gates, channels, large and small gates, lakes and ponds, etc.The dam is 275 meters long, 25 meters wide, 2.5 meters high, and arched.In terms of its history of 1500 years ago, this kind of arch dam should be the earliest in the world. The scientific nature of its design lies in weakening the impact force of water flow on the unit width of the barrage and dam, so that it has a strong ability to resist flood peaks .It can still be seen that the river water that has changed its direction through the arch dam discharges along the center of the arch dam, which effectively reduces the impact on the slope protection of the barrage and the bank of the stream.The irrigation network layout of Tongji Weir includes 48 branch canals and 321 hair canals on the 23-kilometer-long canal. The lakes and ponds store water, forming a bamboo branch-like water system network mainly for irrigation and storage, and for both storage and discharge.Compared with Dujiangyan and Zhengguoqu, this structure is more scientific and reasonable.As the only ancient irrigation system with complete functions in my country, the historical value of Tongji Weir lies in the addition of a three-dimensional cross-type stone diversion bridge built in the first year of Zhenghe in the Northern Song Dynasty [AD 1111], which prevented the weir and channel from being blocked by sediment. Make the canal flow unimpeded.The embryonic form of this modern overpass is also the earliest in the world.
Tongji Weir, which once led the world, appeared in Zhejiang, at least from one aspect, it shows the long history and excellence of Zhejiang's water conservancy construction.An article records that "in the Bihu Plain before the Southern Dynasties, the Songyin River often flooded during the rainy season, swallowing up patches of crops. In severe drought years, the Songyin River lost water in vain, and a large number of crops died, resulting in no harvest. Bihu The people in the plain were miserable, and groups of people chose to migrate, causing the population of the Bihu Plain to drop sharply. Therefore, the sages who insisted on their homeland appealed to the government to build a cofferdam on the Songyin River, along the Bihu Plain. Weirs and ditches are excavated in the plains to irrigate farmland, and weirs and ditches are used to divert floods from lakes and ponds..." That is to say, the construction of Tongji Weir is based on public opinion and political achievements.
The so-called public opinion, in the final analysis, is nothing more than living and working in peace and contentment, and water is the first demand.But the waters of nature have always been free and willful, tender when they are friendly, violent and unruly when they are wild, and the Songyin River on the Bihu Plain is no exception.The Bihu Plain, a typical example of Ouyue farming civilization, is fundamentally dependent on the nourishment and source of Songyin River.The upstream of Songyin Creek is Nanxi River in Suichang County. After flowing through Miaogao Town and joining Beixi River, it is called Jinxi River, and when it reaches Zhuangshan, it joins Lianxi River. It is called Songyin River when it reaches Zikou.The main stream of Songyin River in Suichang County is 56 kilometers long, with a drainage area of nearly 600 square kilometers. It enters Songyang County from Jieshou Village, Chishou Township, and exits from Yanhouwei, Yuxi Township, and flows into Oujiang River.The main stream of Songyin River in Songyang is more than 60 kilometers long, with a drainage area of more than 1,300 square kilometers and 160,000 mu of arable land. The people who live on Songyin River account for more than 90% of the total population of Songyang. The expectation is all benefits and no harm.
Although such expectations have laid a solid foundation with the completion and use of Tongji Weir, the construction of water conservancy has never been a one-time thing, and the treatment of Songyin River has not been done once and for all.Next to Tongji Weir, a national key cultural relic protection unit, there is still a Zhannan Ersima Temple, which is dedicated to the two local officials who presided over the construction of Tongji Weir. There are more than 20 inscriptions in it. "Ji Yan Zhi" said: "Sima Zhan and Nan Er's family began to build the weir in the fourth year of Liang Tianjian in the Southern Dynasty..." The most outstanding contribution of the two of them to this world-class leading project may lie in the selection of the dam site and the design of the dam body. design.
However, the age is too long. The site selection process of Tongjiyan Dam is impossible to leave precious and detailed written materials like the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Dam. What we read from Wang Tingzhi's stele today is only There is a legend: "...One day, an old man pointed it out and said: If you encounter a foreign object when crossing the stream, you will camp there. It turned out that the white snake came from the south mountain to the north of the stream, and you camped." Behind the myth, it is always the hearts of the people. It shows that the construction of Tongji Weir is not only man-made, but also God's will.Of course, the selection of the dam site still has topography to test. As for why the dam is designed to be arched, it is really an eternal mystery.It is said that the earliest arch dams in foreign countries, one is Elge Arch Dam in Spain, and the other is Bondardo Arch Dam in Italy.
In fact, in my opinion, the arched shape of Tongjiyan Dam not only has practical value, but also has aesthetic meaning, and there is no lack of romantic and unrestrained humanistic factors. Maybe it really has artistic considerations.Sima was a military officer in the Southern Dynasties. Although the second Sima of Zhan and Nan was not a literati, most of the officials who were officials in ancient times were connected with literati.In fact, among those who are related to or know Tongjiyan, there are not a few well-known literati, among them Fan Chengda is one, and Tang Xianzu is also one.Fan served as the magistrate of Lishui during the Qiandao period of the Southern Song Dynasty, and Tang served as the county magistrate of Suichang in the 21st year of Wanli in the Ming Dynasty.Suichang is a neighboring county of Songyang, and Lishui is the state capital where Songyang is located. Of course, Fan and Tang both left their footprints in Tongjiyan.When Fan was in office, Tongji Weir had been in disrepair for a long time. He presided over the rectification project of dredging silt and unclogging. The article "The Construction of Tongji Weir in Lishui County" gave this project a very high evaluation: "Take the power of heaven and earth, use it to the five elements, open up the advantages and disadvantages, reduce the benefit and gain the solid. Judgment, nothing but talent..."
In the Zhannan Ersima Temple, there are so many inscriptions like this that it is hard to linger.Wiping away the historical dust of the long years, what we see is not only a history of water conservancy, but also a cultural context, such as the calligraphy of Fan Chengda's "Tongji Weir Regulations Stele" and Tang Xianzu's literary talent in "The Story of Building Tongji Weir in Lishui County" etc., all of which have the dual value of hydraulic engineering and historical culture.
Thousands of years have passed, when we deliberately developed the Xin'an River at the beginning of the founding of New China, determined to use her abundant water resources to benefit the people, because the location of the dam was chosen to be in Zhejiang. Decision makers and water conservancy experts should not fail to think of the Tongji Weir that has existed on this land for thousands of years, and will not fail to draw reference and inspiration from it.Speaking of this now, of course it can only be a speculation, but although there is no direct record to show it, spiritually speaking, a political party with no construction experience plans a huge project in the face of a poor and white reality. The boldness and boldness of the company should be derived from the foundation laid by the ancestors, and the humanistic power is ahead of the economic and technological power.
It seems that in the same strain, the construction of Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station also has two fundamental points, one is the will of the people, and the other is the action of the state.The will of the people is conceptual, and the actions of the state are concrete.The birth of New China marked that the people were the masters of the country, and the only idea of the turned working people was to live a good life. When specific national actions were based on the wishes of the people, the people would use unprecedented enthusiasm, Labor and dedication give back.
Someone once imagined the scene of the construction of Tongji Weir in this way: "The high-pitched and continuous horns sounded from the riverbed of Songyin River, cutting through the gray mist in the morning, and a group of strong ancestors emerged from the place where the fog broke through. , the crowd was passionate, they were working on the river bed in full swing, filling the frame made of bamboo and wood with stones, gradually accumulating into a huge dam body. The construction site was full of people. From the bottom of the dam to the The crest of the dam, from the main canal to the branch canal, is full of busy people, sweating like rain everywhere, firm faces overflowing with firmness and confidence, and every foot of the dam body has left behind their hardships and enthusiasm.” For thousands of years, for oneself The realization of wishes, the people may all work together like this. When I imagined the era when the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station was built, it seemed that this was the scene that appeared before my eyes.
Liu Yuchun, who had studied the mechanized construction and management of hydropower stations in the Soviet Union, described the construction site of Xin'an River in this way: "At that time, everyone lived in grass sheds, lit oil lamps, and worked in 24-hour shifts. At the beginning, there were no large-scale machinery. Everyone used shoulders, people to lift, and trolleys to pull, and a labor competition was set off on the entire construction site. Everyone chased after each other, and the record was refreshed every day..."
This kind of crowded tactical construction scene can no longer be seen. The construction of national and local large-scale construction projects has been mechanized and electrified, which has liberated productivity unprecedentedly.However, at the beginning of the construction of the Xin'anjiang Hydropower Station, it was true that it could only rely on manpower and the simplest production tools. Especially before the project was launched, the Soviet experts who came to assist the construction were withdrawn one after another. Have to rely on their own to solve.The past of thousands of years, Xin'an River, a dream of a thousand years, has finally shown to the world that as the first large-scale hydropower project with self-designed, self-made equipment and self-construction after the founding of New China, this historic development of Xin'an River also means a lot. It is said that the leap of China's water conservancy industry started from here.
The construction of a large-scale hydropower station on the Xin'an River is said to be in the spring of 1954. After Mao Zedong drafted the first "Constitution of the People's Republic of China" in Hangzhou, he chatted with Jiang Hua, then deputy secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee.The place where we chatted was in Geling, Beishan Street, the study room where Mao Zedong lived. Looking out from the window there, we were facing the rippling West Lake.
杭州这个地方，西湖的名声历来都要比城市大，古代杭州的地方官，能留大名者，也多因做了有益于西湖的事。譬如白居易，又譬如苏东坡，两位都对西湖的治理作过贡献，尤其是苏东坡。此人在北宋元祐年间出知杭州时，见西湖积淤成患，遂出谋划策，组织民力，在栖霞岭与南屏山之间挖泥筑堤、疏道架桥，给后世留下一条“苏堤”，不仅疏浚了西湖，还营造了“六桥烟柳”的风景。这位东坡先生似乎对兴修水利格外热衷，几年后到湖州做刺史，又拨款立项，以疏浚白苹洲和碧浪湖。正如湖州诗人柯平所言：“开沟挖渠、疏浚河道似乎是贯穿这位爱民如子的太守终生的一项爱好。无论是在杭州、黄州、湖州，甚至形同充军的海南任上，他都这么干。”毛泽东和江华当时是否聊过这些，不得而知，但由苏东坡而起的话题，却肯定是水，毛就说到了钱塘江。
浙江对钱塘江的水利勘测研究，重点在占其流域面积四分之一的上游水系新安江。全国解放前，钱塘江水利勘测处就曾经将一份勘测报告呈交给国民党行政院，认为在新安江上建造水电站“可供宁沪杭三角地区之需求，尤具经济价值。应争取时机提前兴筑，以树全国经建事业之先声”，并表示“第兹事体大，非群策群力，未易奏功，有本省商准资源委员会水利部暨上海市政府联衔具呈行政院赐准”。事实上，在1946年前后，这份被冠以《钱塘江街口水力发电计划概要》的报告，也确实被摆在了国民党经济工作的议事日程上，引起国民政府的重视，并几近付诸实施。
最直接的举措，就是南京国民政府拿出了1700万美金，拨给浙江省用以兴建新安江水力发电站。钱是蒋介石亲自批的，来源于美国的援助款。美国人对新安江水利资源也是相当有兴趣的，一个叫麦克洛的水利专家，那段时间就曾经来浙江做过考察，结识了中国水利专家徐洽时、余森文等人。徐是钱塘江水利勘测处主任，余先是温州地区专员兼水利工程委员会的主任，因为“不仅能讲一口流利的英文，而且对水利建设也十分的内行”，为时任浙江省政府主席沈鸿烈所派遣，和美国专家合作兴建新安江街口水电站，麦克洛作为美国专家之一，和余森文一见如故，两人相谈甚欢、跃跃欲试。
钱有了，美国人也来了，1948年6月，取代沈鸿烈成为浙江省主席的陈仪以为在他任上把新安江水电站造起来，已是万事俱备了，很是兴奋地表示：“一定要在新安江上造出世界一流的电站！”但是没想到仅仅才过了4个月，美国政府就把他们的专家从新安江全部撤走了。解放战争的急速推进，使国民党的统治地位摇摇欲坠，美国人想重新打他们的算盘了。
麦克洛身为水利专家，对政治或许不感兴趣，他惋惜的只是自己不能在新安江有所作为了，走的时候非常遗憾。麦说：“新安江的水力太厉害了，聪明人都会去开发利用的。”麦克洛这么说是因为他相信，即便美国人都撤走了，国民党也垮了，中国人还是能在新安江建起水电站，共产党里不乏聪明人。
陈云就是一个，张铁铮也是一个。1952年的春节，在中央主管经济的陈云把负责燃料工业部的张铁铮请到了中南海，谈的不是燃料，却是水电开发。张在汇报中就提到了新安江。陈云深表兴趣，希望看到更具体的材料。半年之后的6月20日，一份《新安江水力资源开发的报告》就以“绝密”的形式，送到了时任华东局经济委员会主任的曾山、谭震林两位手上，转而又上报给国务院，引起了副总理李富春的关注和重视。
这份报告的起草人，除张铁铮外，还有数度勘测新安江，对钱塘江水系极为熟悉的徐洽时，另一人为王宝基，曾留学英国实习水力发电工程，1950年后归队到燃料工业部水电总局任工程师。尤其是徐洽时，不仅出任过钱塘江水利勘测处主任，而且也是数年前筹建的新安江街口水电站的主要专家。令他感到欣慰的是，美国人撤走后，国民党政府没有办成的事，再度为共产党所重视。对自然资源的开发利用，本是人类共同的理想，当然也是他始终的追求。
和数年前选址街口不同的是，这份报告是“建议在罗桐埠修建一座110米的高坝，年发电量14亿千瓦时，解决华东10年甚至20年供电不足问题”，并且在报告送出的同一时段，张铁铮就直接向李富春提出请求，希望将新安江的开发列入正在制定中的第一个五年计划的电力基建，获得了李富春和主持“一五”计划编制工作的陈云的批准。
原国民党国家资源委员会委员长翁文灏、水利部部长薛笃弼、上海市市长吴国桢，以及浙江省政府主席沈鸿烈联名给行政院打报告，主张兴建新安江街口水电站的时间，是1948年的4月，及至1952年6月，在这4年零两个月里，中国经历了天翻地覆的变化，新安江水电站的兴建也经历了起起落落的曲折，但终于在新中国的时间表上真正铺开了新的蓝图。
这一年的下半年，对新安江的勘测研究和开发论证再度启动，在随后的一年半时间里，已经出任中共华东局第三书记的谭震林，多次召集沪浙两地的经济建设主管和国家燃料工业部水力发电总局领导商议相关事宜，所以毛泽东在杭州像是不经意地问了江华一句：“听说你们在做新安江的文章？”江华就把事情的前前后后，简略地介绍了一番，然后说：“国民党想要办的事，我们共产党肯定比他们办得好，办得大。”这话毛泽东爱听，并且他对筹划兴建新安江水电站的事也绝非毫不知情，题点到了，态也就接着表了，毛泽东说：“我支持！”
至此，该出场的人物都出场了，该做的案头也都做了。这一年的5月，江华出任浙江省委第一书记，12月，在浙江省钱塘江水力发电勘察处基础上成立的华东水利工程局，更名为上海水力发电勘测设计院，主要负责新安江水电工程的勘测设计，徐洽时任总工程师。次年5月，由他们会同燃料工业部论证制定的三个开发方案，递交到了华东局。
所以对新安江的开发做了三个方案，主要是在装机容量和淹没耕地、迁移人口之间权衡利弊。三个方案分别为三级开发，其中的三级开发，“因邵村建坝投资较大，发电量所增不多，暂拟不作深入研究”，实际需要拍板的，就是一级开发，还是二级开发，两个方案的建坝地址都选在罗桐埠，不同的是一级开发的坝高105米，装机容量66万千瓦，二级开发的坝高降至36米，装机容量仅为8万千瓦，这显然不理想，因此二级开发又另作了补充，即在上游处再行建坝，其中的甲方案选址在黄江潭，坝高55米，装机容量14万千瓦，乙方案选址云头，坝高73米，装机容量16万千瓦。
显而易见的是，二级开发的甲乙两项，不仅分级建坝在工程上耗工费时，且装机容量远不及一级开发，似不足取，但是在耕地淹没和人口迁移上，二者的47000亩、68000人和76000亩、94000人也远低于一级开发的31万亩和235000人。从直接损失上来看，二级开发低于一级开发，尽管建成后的效应也相对要低许多。尤其令决策者为难的是，若是实施一级开发，则95%以上的损失需由浙江一省承担，新安江水电站建成后，浙江的淳安、遂安两座县城以及49个乡镇，将被淹没，永远地成为水底记忆。
抉择的过程是艰难的，但最后的拍板，却像是快刀斩乱麻。从方案出台的5月初到一锤定音的5月24日，前后不到一个月，结果就出来了。那一天，在上海和平饭店举行的浙江、安徽、江苏三省及相关地县委主要领导会议上，听取了三省主官的发言后，主持会议的中共华东局第三书记谭震林就宣布说：“新安江开发就按一级开发！”
谭震林当然不是凭借个人意志信口出言的，他的决断来自于浙皖苏三省主官的表态，其中最关键的，又在于江华。这位新任浙江省委第一书记对不久前毛泽东在杭州的谈话印象深刻，知道毛对新安江寄予的是一种大期待，所以他说：“浙江省委的意见：要上就上大的。”有了他这句话，安徽和江苏的压力小了，纷纷顺着江华的意思表了态。会上最坐不住的，要数淳安和遂安两县的父母官了，因为江华又说了：“为了全局利益，只得牺牲局部利益，淳安和遂安人民只能奉献和牺牲。”他们知道，几十万人的背井离乡，谈何容易！
就新安江开发而言，无论在哪个点上建坝，都是会有所损失的，村镇移民和耕地房屋受淹，均无法避免，因为手头缺乏资料，我不知道解放前的街口水电站兴建方案中，是否论及这两大难题，又是作如何盘算的，说国民党丝毫也不顾及民生，现在看来，恐怕也不尽然，共产党是为人民谋利益的，在这方面应该做得更好些，但“局部利益”的牺牲却是何等沉重。
将近一年半之后的1955年10月，国家建设委员会下达《对新安江技术经济报告的审核意见》，批准了新安江水电站一级开发的方案。
按谭震林在拍板时的讲话要求，新安江开发的移民问题与大坝建设是同等重要的：“一级开发的新安江电站工程一是大坝建设，二是移民安置，两项工作要同时推进。”事实上，立足新安江开发的上海水力发电勘测设计院不仅制定了三个开发方案，也提出过一个《新安江水电站水库移民第二方案》。将此方案称之谓“第二”并不是因为他们之前还制定过一个“第一”，而是针对浙江省的《新安江水电站淹没区移民方案》，把它看做是“第一方案”了，从时间上看，两项工作的确是在同时推进的。
国家建委的《审核意见》下达后仅一个月，确定新安江水电站坝址由罗桐埠改为铜官峡的《决议书草案》就形成了；过了两个月，浙江省提交了由副省长杨思一主持的移民方案；又过了四个月，这个《第二方案》也出来了。
表面看来，一切都是有计划的，都在按部就班，但这两项工作，一是针对自然的建设，二是面向民众的生存，前者可以靠热情和干劲，后者却必须有利益与保证，当然，科学合理是共同的前提。但毋庸讳言的是，时间上可以说是同时推进的这两项工作，实际效果的差别却非常之大。
新安江水电站大坝工程1957年4月1日破土动工，1959年9月，水库建成并蓄水，1960年4月9日，周恩来总理题词，为新安江水电站“胜利建设而欢呼”，22日，第一台发电机组启动发电。这个过程前前后后，只用了3年的时间，但是第一批动迁的新安江移民，始于1956年的11月，从淳安县茶园紫峰乡芹坑村迁往桐庐县横村乡孙家村落户，比大坝开工还早了半年，至于整个移民过程和安置工作到底做得怎样，却直到17年后的1973年，依旧“不能得到一个确切的移民数据和正确的分析资料”，其后遗症更是绵延至今。难怪国务院曾对新安江水库建设下过一个结论，谓之“移民工作做得不好”。
时隔50多年，现在我们对建造新安江水电站的回忆，依旧充满着自豪、激动与兴奋，但对相关的新安江移民的追思，更多的却已是喟叹、苍凉和伤感。在1983年版的《现代汉语词典》中，关于“代价”这个词的条目，有两个解释，一是“获得某种东西所付出的钱”；二是“泛指为达到某种目的所耗费的物质或精力”。如果新安江水电站也可谓“某种东西”和“某种目的”的话，这两个解释就过于冰凉和苍白了，它忽视了世间最不可忽视的要素——人，与所谓的钱、物质或精力相比，人的重要性是无法估价的。尽管人不可以价而论，但为新安江开发作出奉献与牺牲的30万移民，却又不能不说是一种代价，一种无法偿还和弥补的损失，就像历史再也不能回头一样。
中国的治水史是一部智慧史、创造史，也是一部英雄史。现存的中国古代水利工程，如陕西郑国渠、四川都江堰、广西灵渠，包括浙江的通济堰，无一不是人类智慧和创造力的结晶。率众修筑这些工程的郑国、李冰、史棣、詹南二司马等人，自然也都是后人所崇敬的英雄。自古以来，治水总是要有牺牲精神的，传说中的大禹三过家门而不入，就是一种舍小家而为国家的牺牲精神，至于历史真实人物的郑国、李冰们，他们个人作出过怎样的牺牲，虽然史料匮乏，但在那些浩大艰巨的工程背后，无数先人曾为之付出的代价，却可以想见，伴随着汩汩流水的不仅有汗水，一定也有泪水。
修筑郑国渠的初衷，据说是战国后期，韩桓惠公见秦王嬴政统一六国的大势在即，为削弱其实力，故意派水利专家郑国赴秦，以兴修一项巨型水利工程来消耗秦国财力物力，尤其是人力，试图达到“疲秦”的目的。但结果却事与愿违地使关中大地上出现了一条造福人类的千古长渠。这条至今仍灌溉着陕西礼泉、泾阳、高陵、临潼、渭南等县市近300万亩土地的百里长渠，它的丰伟功绩已被历史证明，但在修筑之时，秦国所付出的代价，肯定也是巨大的。秦始皇采纳郑国的建议下令实施，渠成之后，变关中瘠地为沃野，收成年丰，反倒促成了秦国的富庶，为日后统一中国奠定了物质基础。
一般说来，开渠筑坝、兴修水利这一类的建设工程，大多与社会发展的重要历史阶段密切相关，郑国渠、都江堰、灵渠都出现在秦代，可谓一例。对当代的中国人来说，新中国的建立，应该也是这样的重要历史阶段，政权更替，百废待兴，像新安江开发这样的宏伟计划，自然是最能表现新政权活力的，何况国家工业化建设对电力的需求，确实也已经是迫在眉睫了。
如果单是从工程建设上来说，新安江水电站是经得住历史检验的。作为当代治水史最重要的篇章之一，它可以被看做是与中国古代水利工程的经典呼应，既是创造性的，靠的也是中国人自己的才智。郑国渠是一个创造，秦代以后，基本上是对其水利设施的完善，如汉代白公渠、唐代三白渠、宋代丰利渠、元代王御史渠、明代广惠渠和清代龙洞渠等。新安江水电站之前，世界上虽然也有了美国田纳西河流域水力发电工程，苏联的第聂伯河水电站，但美国专家在国民党的新安江开发计划实施之初就撤走了，而苏联专家则在新中国确定新安江水电站坝址的《决议书草案》形成还不到两个月，也都陆续打道回府了，最终是中国人自行设计、自制设备把电站建造成功。
损失和牺牲就是在这样的历史时期，这样的国力条件下既成事实的。在浙江省制订的移民方案中，原先是有85000多农民被安排进新建厂当工人的，但是在那份“第二方案”中被否定了，理由是水库淹没了农田，已经造成了粮食生产的损失，新增8万多工人，国家要拿出更多粮食补偿，不利于粮食平衡，据说这是苏联专家的意见，但也确是当时的社会现实。
我们当然不能简单地说，安排8万多移民进工厂的方案，一定就比否定它的另一个方案更值得肯定，对当时的浙江省来说，要解决这8万多人的粮食，也不是件很容易的事，但至少浙江省政府是表达了一种态度，那就是愿与移民共同承受将要面临的沉重损失，而不是把它全部推给移民自身。
在中国当代治水史上，决策者、设计者和工程建设者的功绩，想来一定是列入最主要位置的，其实对新安江开发来说，30万移民更值得载入史册，他们的奉献和牺牲，是所有那一切成就的基石。这些移民的绝大部分，都是淳安人和遂安人，曾经的贺城、狮城两座县城沉入水底后，两县合并成一新县，沿用淳安县名，1994年的水电部部长钮茂生视察新淳安时说：“原来是鱼米之乡，现在米没有了，鱼也不是他们的了，留下那么多问题和困难，成了杭州的西藏。”对于大功大德的新安江移民，实在是不应该让他们这样地被载入史册……
现在该来谈谈千岛湖了，这座因新安江开发而生成的水库湖，容量达178亿立方米，面积相当于三千个西湖，水色纯净，质地天然，像一页无边的宣纸，将川流不息的新安江，裱成了一派水墨丹青。她暂时安静了下来，广渺平滑的湖面，如同一位智者的神情，祥和、幽邃而宽容，这处曾经“一滩又一滩，新安在天上”的所在，成了新安江水系的集结地，然后再经由既熟悉而又陌生的铜官峡谷，从百米高坝飞泻直下，开始她新的流程。正是在这一过程中，历史的新安江完成了世人注目的现代价值。
除了供新安江水电站的发电之用，千岛湖那一湖碧水，也因群峰环抱、生态和谐、风光旖旎、气象万千，成了遐迩闻名的国家级风景旅游名胜，节假日一天的游客人数就在10万以上。随着时光的推移，新安江开发的经济价值，正在越来越显著地得以体现，真是“高峡出平湖，当惊世界殊”。
千岛湖的范围很大，从建德和淳安两市县均可进入湖区。建德入湖的游轮码头主要设在毛竹源和金竹牌，淳安入湖的两处码头，则为千岛湖和西园。千岛湖码头在淳安县治千岛湖镇，原名排岭，系1959年淳安、遂安两县合并后的新淳安县址，1991年更名为千岛湖镇。以两县30万移民背井离乡换回的千岛湖来命名他们的新家园，应是理所当然的，何况在昔日排岭半岛上兴建的新城，如今已是“一城山色半城湖”，三面环水，可谓名副其实的千岛湖镇。
有人拿千岛湖和西湖相比，认为西湖是古典的，千岛湖是现代的。其实就山水而言，两者不见得有太大的区别，虽然西湖在人文蕴涵方面，譬如断桥、雷峰塔、苏白二堤、岳庙等，要远胜于现在的千岛湖，但千岛湖作为新安江开发的一个副项，却也并非只是单纯的水库湖。早在五万年前，新安江两岸就有人类活动的踪迹了，流水不断，这股文脉也不会断，她贯穿至今，自然也就是千岛湖的一个内在部分，或者说是千岛湖的一段历史追溯。
和千岛湖一样，西湖的形成，也有着人类治水的因素。最早用地质学观点解释西湖成因的，是日本地质学家石井八次郎，认为西湖与日本中禅寺湖相似，南山古生代岩层山坡的北流溪水，受北山火山岩阻塞，聚积成湖。但这还只是一种假说，竺可桢先生1920年考察西湖，也提出过另一种假说，认为西湖原是钱塘江的一处小湾，因江水挟带的砂土堵塞了湾口而渐次成一礁湖。还有一种较之这两种更为流行的假说，认为西湖曾经是一个浅海湾，因泥沙堆积截断了海水，浅湾遂成湖泊，在地质学上称为“瀉湖”，湖面会随着海潮的来去而起落。说西湖的形成有着人类治水的因素，在于钱塘江海塘的修筑，完全阻拦了海水倒灌，使之在随后千百年间的一次又一次疏浚中得以完善。钱塘江海塘正是中国古代一项宏伟而壮观的大型水利工程。
历代的西湖之所以需要疏浚，在于湖底的淤积。西湖是个浅水湖，即便是经过了1999年底的解放以来最大规模的疏浚，目前的平均水深，也只是从1.65米提高到了2.27米，与千岛湖的水深呈天壤之别。这么浅的水域，湖底除去淤泥，就几乎不会有什么别的东西