The operator of the Three Gorges Dam plans to overhaul its finances after a government audit found that the world’s largest hydroelectric project faces urgent environmental, geologic and economic problems.

China Three Gorges Corp said 31 problems had been highlighted relating to financial management, investment, bidding and other issues, Xinhua reported.

The State Council said that the dam required action to curb pollution, counter risks of possible natural disasters and improve living conditions for the 1.4m people who were forced to relocate when the dam was built.

This is an unusually candid admission by the Chinese government of problems associated with the dam, which many in China blame for various environmental and ecological issues in the region, including prolonged drought. In recent years, state media have reported landslides, minor earthquakes, pollution disasters and ecological degradation in the dam area, without highlighting any possible link with the dam.