Argentina leader leaves controversial legacy with Patagonia dams project

Cristina Fernindez de Kirchner's hydroelectric project will bring jobs and money to Patagonia's grasslands - but political and environmental implications of the $5.7bn scheme, backed by China, have sparked concern

As the presidency of Argentina's Cristina Fernindez de Kirchner enters its final days, her greatest - and arguably most controversial - legacy project is just getting under way in the remote grasslands of Patagonia.

Here, amid herds of wild guanacos, condor nests and the occasional rhea, a Chinese-financed team of engineers will soon be dynamiting hillsides and pouring millions of tonnes of concrete for two giant hydroelectric dams that will flood an area the size of Buenos Aires.