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IN THIS ISSUE Colombia: An indigenous Brazil: New dams are surfac- activist working on issues ing in the wake of a major around Urra Dam has been energy crisis. Page 6 kidnapped. Page 1 Brazil: Cana Brava Dam Commentary: Let the protests continue. Page 7 sunshine in. Page 2 Dams Lite: Run-of-river dams Malaysia: Selangor Dam is are not benign. Page 8 ruining lives for no good rea- Honduras: A tiny dam leads son. Page 3 to violence against affected India: Orissa's recent floods people. Page 10 were worsened by a huge Ghana: The Bui Dam would “flood control” dam. Page 4 flood one-quarter of a national China: A floodplain restora- park and destroy habitat for tion project is restoring rare hippos. Page 12 wetlands. Page 5 In Print: A slew of reviews of California: The notorious new resources. Page 14 Auburn Dam rears its ugly

head again. Page 5

+91.11.301.6857 Email: [email protected] Email: +91.11.301.6857 cials working in the valley. the in working cials international critics of the project. On July On project. the of critics international

7, Race Course Road, New Delhi 110001. Fax: 110001. Delhi New Road, Course Race 7, a reign of violence against government offi- government against violence of reign a Attempts are also being made to muzzle to made being also are Attempts

Atal Behari Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India, India, of Minister Prime Vajpayee, Behari Atal projects to foreign agencies, and letting loose letting and agencies, foreign to projects those who disagree with it.” with disagree who those

What you can do: Write letters of protest to to protest of letters Write do: can you What confidential reports on important Indian important on reports confidential muzzle dissent, to harass and intimidate and harass to dissent, muzzle

ties as receiving foreign funding, passing on passing funding, foreign receiving as ties part of the Court to silence criticism and criticism silence to Court the of part

describes the NBA’s alleged subversive activi- subversive alleged NBA’s the describes “indicates a disquieting inclination on the on inclination disquieting a “indicates issues and has never visited the Narmada. the visited never has and issues

signed the memorandum. The NCCL The memorandum. the signed tempt. Roy’s affidavit states that the case the that states affidavit Roy’s tempt. India. Leonard works on toxic pollution toxic on works Leonard India.

two senior politicians from Madhya Pradesh Madhya from politicians senior two investigated as further examples of con- of examples further as investigated List” and was prohibited from ever visiting ever from prohibited was and List”

chief ministers of the state of Gujarat and Gujarat of state the of ministers chief davits rejecting the charges are now being now are charges the rejecting davits cials in the US that she was on the “Adverse the on was she that US the in cials

the 1957 Unlawful Activities Act. Five former Five Act. Activities Unlawful 1957 the gize for the baseless charges and their affi- their and charges baseless the for gize Leonard was recently told by Indian offi- Indian by told recently was Leonard

demanding that the NBA be banned under banned be NBA the that demanding The three accused have refused to apolo- to refused have accused three The Activity” by the Indian Embassy in Australia. Australia. in Embassy Indian the by Activity”

pro-dam) Delhi Home Minister L. K. Advani K. L. Minister Home Delhi pro-dam) ing the crowd to kill them. kill to crowd the ing was accused of “Indulging in Anti State Anti in “Indulging of accused was

memorandum to influential (and fiercely (and influential to memorandum complainants accuse Roy and Patkar of incit- of Patkar and Roy accuse complainants during the 1999 monsoon-season protests, monsoon-season 1999 the during

for Civil Liberties (NCCL) has submitted a submitted has (NCCL) Liberties Civil for the Supreme Court in December 2000. The 2000. December in Court Supreme the Warwick, who visited the Narmada Valley Narmada the visited who Warwick,

A body calling itself the National Council National the itself calling body A by taking part in a demonstration outside demonstration a in part taking by the US, were recently refused Indian visas. Indian refused recently were US, the

foreign supporters of the NBA out of India. of out NBA the of supporters foreign launching a “blitzkrieg against the judiciary” the against “blitzkrieg a launching wick from Australia and Annie Leonard from Leonard Annie and Australia from wick

a campaign appears to have started to keep to started have to appears campaign a Court. The three have been accused of accused been have three The Court. Two other overseas activists, Nikki War- Nikki activists, overseas other Two

sentences on contempt of court charges. And charges. court of contempt on sentences court charges in the New Delhi Supreme Delhi New the in charges court been arrested for her activities there. activities her for arrested been

to the NBA face possible six-month prison six-month possible face NBA the to lawyer Prashant Bhushan face contempt of contempt face Bhushan Prashant lawyer elled to the Narmada Valley but had never had but Valley Narmada the to elled

dams on the Narmada. Leading figures linked figures Leading Narmada. the on dams Patkar, writer Arundhati Roy and the NBA’s the and Roy Arundhati writer Patkar, “Threat to National Security.” Sauer has trav- has Sauer Security.” National to “Threat

NBA, the leading group in the fight to halt big halt to fight the in group leading the NBA, Meanwhile, leading activist Medha activist leading Meanwhile, and saw a document referring to her as a as her to referring document a saw and

politicians are supporting a call to “ban” the “ban” to call a supporting are politicians tions for freedom and democracy.” and freedom for tions cials referring to her support for the NBA, the for support her to referring cials

supporters. A group of prominent of group A supporters. I able if it was not so full of tragic implica- tragic of full so not was it if able son for her deportation but overheard offi- overheard but deportation her for son

the Narmada Movement (NBA) and its and (NBA) Movement Narmada the demand to ban the NBA “would be laugh- be “would NBA the ban to demand 6-month Indian visa. Sauer was given no rea- no given was Sauer visa. Indian 6-month

stepped up attempts to silence the Save the silence to attempts up stepped Frontline, Ashish Kothari says that the that says Kothari Ashish Frontline, on arrival at Delhi airport, despite holding a holding despite airport, Delhi at arrival on

ndian authorities have recently have authorities ndian Writing in the Indian news magazine news Indian the in Writing 12, Canadian citizen Ali Sauer was deported was Sauer Ali citizen Canadian 12,

Efforts to Silence Narmada Activists Grow Activists Narmada Silence to Efforts Stop Press Stop World Rivers Review Volume 16, Number 4 / August 2001

Published by International Rivers Network

Colombian Indigenous Dam Activist Kidnapped by Monti Aguirre

n June 2, Kimy Pernia Domicó, a River) just before the river waters were leader of the Embera-Katío diverted for dam construction. A thousand indigenous people from Colom- Emberas travelled on the Sinú River in their O bia, was abducted allegedly by canoes to the city of Lorica. members of the paramilitary group United When the Emberas took their case to the Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) in Constitutional Court, Colombia’s highest the town of Tierralta, Córdoba. judicial court decided in their favor, forcing Kimy, the grandson of a great Embera the government and company to negotiate shaman, had been a highly visible, outspo- with them over their losses. However, before ken leader of the Embera in their efforts to the process could be completed, the Ministry defend their lands, rights and autonomy fol- of the Environment in November 1999 lowing the construction of Urrá Dam, which granted the company a license to begin fill- flooded a large expanse of their lands and ing the reservoir. deprived them of fish, their staple food. Once again, the Embera took their case to The abduction of Kimy is just the latest the judicial system, while continuing other violence against Embera who have publicly protests against the project. 170 Emberas, led stood up to protect their communities from by Kimy, marched 700 kilometers from their lands to Bogotá. There, they staged a four- the dam and other intrusions. Another Kimy. leader, Lucindo Domicó, who played an month vigil at the Ministry of the Environ- important role in negotiations with the Urrá ment, which resulted in the re-opening of company, disappeared in 1999 and was later tropical rainforest in Córdoba state. The negotiations between the Embera-Katío, the found dead. An interview with paramilitary 340 MW project, which cost US$800 million government and the company. On April 19, leader Carlos Castaño in a recent issue of the ($200 million more than initially planned) 2000, an agreement was signed which was to Colombian magazine Semana stated that was 40% financed by the Colombian state have guaranteed that steps be taken to ensure Lucindo was killed because he “interfered and 60% through international institutions, the survival and well-being of the Embera. with dam operation.” including Canada’s Export Development Embera Katío leaders say 16 tribal mem- Corporation, Sweden’s Nordbanken, and the Drug War’s Victims bers have been killed by the paramilitary Nordic Investment Bank. Skanska, a Swedish But throughout this process, violence was and FARC guerrillas over the past three construction company, built the project in escalating in the Embera-Katío’s lands. The years. The most recent assassination since association with Colombian company Con- cause appears to be a struggle for power in Kimy’s abduction was that of Alirio Pedro civiles, and Russian Energomatchexport pro- the region between paramilitary forces and Domico. In Kimy’s words, “We are caught vided the turbines. guerrillas. The Embera’s territory is rich in between two fires – they threaten us, they Construction of the project’s access road resources, and because of its isolation is well- burn our houses and canoes, they kill our began in 1979. According to a document by suited to coca cultivation. Kimy had been an leaders, and involve us in a war that is not the Embera-Katío, “the road brought rapid outspoken opponent of pressure from both ours.” colonization, diminishing of the fauna due the guerrillas and paramilitaries to grow coca to hunting and chainsaws; and everybody in Embera territory. A People Dammed began to compete for lumber cutting. People Kimy visited the United States in 2000 to Close to 70,000 people were affected by the began to abandon the traditional economy alert US Senators and Representatives to the Urrá Dam, including the Embera-Katío peo- and values in exchange for an economy unintended violent consequences for indige- ple and peasant communities living dependent on lumber cutting and money. nous people expected from “Plan Colom- upstream from the dam site; peasant and This has been a very painful process as it has bia,” a US aid package for military aid to fishing communities of the lower Sinú River, also originated internal conflicts in the com- combat coca growing and drug trafficking. and the Zenú indigenous peoples located munity.” The project was also marred by He gave testimony at that time about para- downstream. poor consultation with affected people. military and military collaboration, and The 73-foot-high dam, which blocks the In 1995, Kimy and Lucindo Domicó orga- emphatically stated that increases in military upper Sinú River, flooded 7,400 hectares of nized the Do Wambura (Farewell to the continued on page 15 World Rivers Review

Let the Volume 16, Number 4 Sunshine In ISSN Number 0890 6211 Editor: Lori Pottinger

hings are not always as they seem in the complex world of big dams. This issue is Design/Production: full of stories illustrating the false premises, failed promises and ulterior motives Jeanette Madden behind large dam schemes. There are tales of a “flood-control dam” that instead exacerbates floods, of an unneeded water-supply dam in one of the wettest places Printing: T on earth, and of an entire category of dams – so-called run-of-river schemes – West Coast Print Center whose often serious impacts belie the innocuous image given them by dam proponents. Sometimes, the ulterior motives behind large dams are more compelling to its backers than the officially stated purpose of water supply, electricity production or flood management. Often, one IRN of the driving motives is simple greed, fueled by nice profits for the engineering and construction Executive Director: firms building the dam, and kick-backs to the politicians greasing the way for it. This explains Juliette Majot many dams that seem in search of a problem to solve. Political motivations are strong contenders for Most Popular Ulterior Motive behind large Staff: dams, next to the money factor. Dams are often a political party’s highest-profile way to address a Monti Aguirre, Paul Allison, seemingly intractable problem, such as poor water supply or electricity blackouts. The problem Elizabeth Brink, Selma Barros might be better addressed in other ways – as is the case with Brazil’s energy crisis (see page 6) or de Oliveira,Anne Carey, Randy Malaysia’s water crisis (opposite page), but political reality in most countries motivates many Flay, Rae Holzman, Ryan Hoover, politicians to take big, flashy actions. Nothing seems to get a politician out of hot water (or no Mary Houghteling,Aviva Imhof, water, in some cases) more visibly than by building something big and concrete. Soudary Kittivong-Greenbaum, Too often when there are strong political motivations for damming a river, there are too few Patrick McCully, Gila Neta, politically strong groups able or willing to stand up and oppose a project. This issue of WRR has a Lori Pottinger, Doris Shen, sobering number of stories describing violence and repression against dam activists, revealing just Glenn Switkes, Malavika Vartak, how far some governments and their corporate friends will go to ensure a smooth path for big- Susanne Wong money projects like a large dam. From the arrest of key activists, as in India’s Narmada Valley (see back page) to the harassment of affected people opposing Brazil’s Cana Brava Dam (p. 7) to the Interns & Volunteers: death of a protestor in Honduras (p. 10), stories like these are sadly common in the WRR archive. Nga Dao,Wil Dvorak, Thanks to the comprehensive work of the World Commission on Dams (WCD), the world now Kapala Hoge, Belle Kevin, knows much more about large dams’ secretive and exclusionary planning processes, their exagger- Maria Steinmann, Sarah ated benefits and underreported impacts, and their poor economics. The WCD also revealed that Slovak, Betty Ann Webster the only way to avoid many of these problems is to open these projects up to the bright light of Board of Directors: public participation. The WCD guidelines are clear on this: at the heart of the commission’s report Paul Strasburg (Chair), is a shift to recognizing the rights of all stakeholders and assessing the risks they (often involun- Dan Beard, Patricia Chang, tarily) face. As former WCD chair Kader Asmal has said, “It moves away from a practice that trades Angana Chatterji, Gigi Coe, Bob off the losses imposed on a minority in the name of benefits received by the majority.” Hass, Dorka Keehn, Lauren Klein, Unfortunately, some of the most powerful people in the world of dams are choosing to bury Joshua Mailman, Brian Smith this report and its guidelines. Governments who hope to continue building dams “the old fash- ioned way” are resisting it or even outright rejecting it. The World Bank, which has been a critical Contact Information: proponent of large dams, has in the past set the standard for other financial institutions and gov- IRN ernments on these controversial projects, but on the WCD guidelines it is lowering the bar. The 1847 Berkeley Way Bank – still an important catalyst for dam-funding worldwide even though it has scaled back its Berkeley, CA 94703 USA direct involvement in large dams – has marginalized the WCD report, despite having sponsored Tel:(510) 848-1155 the commission and been involved in the entire process. On at least one post-WCD project, Buja- Fax: (510) 848-1008 gali Dam in Uganda, World Bank project staff have been told they should not attempt to comply E-mail: [email protected] with WCD guidelines, only World Bank policies. NGOs have been pressuring the Bank to fully World Wide Web: adopt the guidelines, but the monolithic institution is proving no more quick on its feet on this http://www.irn.org issue than it has been on innumerable other concerns raised by activists over the years. IRN will travel to Washington, DC in September to protest the World Bank’s backpedaling on the WCD during the Bank’s annual general meeting. Activists are planning a “Teach-In” that is likely to attract several thousand activists from around the globe, which will look at the big dams debate as well as Third World debt, privatization, mining, water supply and other issues. The meeting will include finance ministers and central bankers from 25 countries, as well as officials from World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and World Trade Organization – “a veritable IRN is an affiliate Board of Directors of the global economy,” note the organizers of the teach-in. Join us if you can. organization of Friends Lori Pottinger of the Earth International.

For more information on the teach-in, please see http://september30.org

Page 2 World Rivers Review August 2001 Malaysian Dam a Poor Response to Water-Management Crisis by Sonia Randhawa

ust swirls round the house. have been greatly exag- There hasn't been water supply gerated, with demand to the village of Kampung Ger- expected to grow at a D achi for six months. Every day, phenomenal rate over the inhabitants are forced to drive 20 min- the next ten years. For Slide at Custom Process. utes away simply to bathe. the predictions to make Pick up Monday around In nearby Kampung Peretak, motorcycles sense, the population stand half-buried in mud. The Sungai Luit of Selangor has to grow 12:30pm. 527-6900 River, which passes through the village, is at 9% each year. This is clogged with tree-trunks, rubbish and other twice the most recent Photo can maybe be bigger, debris. The villagers collect rainwater for growth rates and but depends on cropping too. drinking now; they used to get drinking water almost four times the I made a little bigger, but will from the river, but it is too polluted now. national projected All this was caused by the US$55 million growth rate. leave for Keith to fix. Selangor Dam, currently under construction Already there is a in peninsular Malaysia, which has devastat- gap between actual and ed the two indigenous communities that are projected water con- being resettled for the project. Ongoing con- sumption figures. The Photo: IRN struction work has turned the village ham- dam is based on the These Orang Asli women will be evicted for Selangor Dam. lets into tiny forested islands in a sea of assumption that Selan- earth-moving equipment and denuded land. gor will be consuming at least 3,000 million around each house on which they would be The dam is supposed to provide water to liters per day (MLD) by the start of 2001. able to grow durian and petai, cash crops crit- Selangor state, but the sad truth is the dam During the first three months of 2001, con- ical to the community's survival. However, is unneeded. The region receives two meters sumption was less than 2,700 MLD. Even the new houses do not have even a quarter of of rainfall each year. It is one of the wettest using the Selangor government's inflated an acre. The topsoil has been stripped from places in the world, but because of poor demand figures, that is enough extra water the surrounding area so the villagers will be water management our taps run dry while for 600,000 people. unable to grow anything in their garden our roads are flooded. But there are people who will benefit from plots. Grass that was planted has already died. In 1998, Selangor, Malaysia’s most popu- the dam, and so the project moves forward. As compensation, the Orang Asli have lous state, faced an almost unprecedented A lot of these benefits come from the been promised oil palm holdings. The gov- crisis of water supply. The state faced a drop short-term employment opportunities ernment has cleared large tracts of forest sur- in supply of 26%, and 1.8 million people offered at the dam site. There are three rounding the resettlement sites to plant oil had their water supply disrupted. Rainfall thousand workers at the site, public rela- palm trees. Accustomed to living off of the was low, and many residents relied on water tions representatives in the nearby town forest, the Orang Asli will be expected to brought in via tankers. The problem lasted Kuala Kubu Bharu and a host of consultants harvest oil palm and become wage laborers. for months, with relief efforts costing about based in Kuala Lumpur. The Environmental The government is currently paying subsi- $5 million. Impact Assessment, the surveys and studies dies to small oil palm plantation owners. However, the problem was not a lack of all create work. Until the oil palm trees mature, each house- water, but poor water management. The Each person involved, each company hold can expect to be paid about $65 a state had more rainfall in the first three hired has a direct stake in building a dam. month. This is about a third of what many months of 1998 than it had in previous And, unlike those who suffer from the con- consider minimum wage. years, yet there was a lack of raw treatable struction, those who benefit wield a lot of This disruption, suffering and poverty water because pollution closed several power. It boils down to big business against is unnecessary. The state of Selangor has treatment plants. 300 indigenous people and the environment. enough water, what it lacks is proper water The shortage was made worse by system Meanwhile, the village of Kampung Ger- management. The beneficiaries of the proj- leakages. More than a third of Selangor's achi is preparing to move. Developers have ect are the wealthy, those who lose out piped water was lost through leaks. If the constructed a “new” Kampung Gerachi on make up the poorest strata of Malaysian leaks were reduced to an internationally the top of a steep hill, inaccessible and far society. The project should be stopped and acceptable level, say 14%, it could provide from a river, vital to the social life of the the affected Orang Asli communities given water for over a million people even at the community. The houses are cramped, and proper compensation for the destruction of currently inflated Malaysia consumption esti- construction is poor – timber beams are their ancestral lands. mates of 559 liters per person per day. The splitting, ceiling panels peeling and cracks scale of this demand-management problem is are appearing in the walls. Mini-landslides The author is with SOS Selangor, a Malaysian still not acknowledged by the government. have occurred on the cleared site, which group working to fight the Selangor Dam. The water shortage of 1998 is not the buried the front steps of some of the houses. only justification for the construction of the The Orang Asli, as the indigenous people Selangor Dam. Water demand projections are known, were promised one acre of land

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 3 Hundreds Flooded by India’s Hirakud Dam Politics, Not Nature Made Orissa Floods Calamitous by Rohan D’Souza

hen laying the foundation celebrated engineer William Willcocks deliv- In Orissa, a prescient flood committee stone for the Hirakud Dam in ered a series of lectures in which he of 1928 noted that floods were inevitable eastern India in 1946, then described a complex flood irrigation system in a deltaic country and it was “useless” to W British Governor Sir in eastern India. This system comprised a attempt to thwart the “workings of nature” Hawthorne Lewis proclaimed that with the network of channels running along the nat- through flood control measures. This commit- dam, “flood, drought and famine will be ural drainage lines of the region and tee argued that in Orissa the problem was not banished” in Orissa province. Hirakud was designed to tap the muddy crest waters of how to prevent floods but how to pass them one of the first multipurpose dam schemes the rivers during periods of flood. The chan- as quickly as possible to the sea and therefore in India, with flood control as its primary nels were designed to nourish fields with the solution lay in “removing all obstacles” objective. When it was being built it was silt, which then required no artificial from the path of the flood. The report of the touted as a “permanent solution” for pre- manures. Other flood coping practices used 1928 committee, however, was buried by the venting floods in the lower Mahanadi River. by peasants in eastern India included evolv- politics of the period which instead facilitated Almost five decades down the line, the ing rice varieties that could grow in deep the construction of the Hirakud Dam. official rhetoric of controlling the Mahanadi water, strategically locating housing, and More recently, the World Bank studied 25 has been replaced with a concern for saving keeping drains in working order. large dams in India and singled out two that the dam itself. In July, hundreds of villages These practices, however, have been elim- were particularly unable to cope with high in the Mahanadi Delta were flooded by a inated by flood control enthusiasts who flood flows, one of which was Hirakud. The surge of water caused when authorities have pursued policies for insulating lands investigators wrote of these two dams that opened 51 of the dam’s 64 gates in July. from floods through embankment construc- “the consequences of dam failure during a Engineers feared that the rapidly rising reser- tion and other flood control technologies. major flood would have to be described with voir could overtop the dam, causing an even This has been followed by the proliferation some adjective beyond disastrous.” greater disaster. In the words of Orissa’s chief of urban and rural settlements in flood- Orissa’s decision-makers continue to secretary, D. P. Bagchi, “the dam’s safety was plains, the systematic drainage of flood- ignore the need for a new direction in deal- of prime importance.” The Hirakud Dam is absorbing wetlands and the obstruction of ing with flooding. And its population con- holding back flood waters as designed, but natural drainage by the careless location of tinues to pay the price by being trapped only to release them in lethal torrents. roads and railway lines. This mindless between the hammer of flood control tech- To explain this irony as a story of excessive “development” of the floodplains has now nologies and the anvil of flood relief politics. rain would wrongly perpetuate the myth that induced unnatural flooding in which most The July floods may be one of the worst flood control through embankments and of the damage is being caused by enhanced floods that Orissa has witnessed, but if cur- reservoirs is a viable and unavoidable response currents and water-logging. The destruction rent flood policies continue it will surely not to bank-bursting rivers. The Orissa Delta, wrought in the Kosi region of Bihar and in be the state’s last flood catastrophe. much like other deltas in eastern India, has, eastern Uttar Pradesh by embankments is over the past 150 years, been transformed clear testimony to the dangers of interfering This is an edited version of an article first from a flood-dependent ecology to a flood- with natural drainage by constructing obsta- published in The Telegraph (Kolkotta) on vulnerable landscape. This has occurred cles in the flood basin. July 25, 2001. through a range of technological interventions driven chiefly by political considerations. River systems function not only as arter- Dams and Flooding: New WWF Report ies for draining precipitation but are also A new report by Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) warns that dams built with significant agents for erosion of soil, its the promise of reducing flooding often exacerbate the problem with catastrophic con- transportation and deposition. This latter sequences.The paper,“Dams and Floods,” shows that dams are often designed with a task is particularly important for building very poor knowledge of the potential for extreme flood events.Where data does exist up deltas and recovering land from the sea. it may fail to consider current risks such as increased rainfall due to climate change or Floodplain rivers are also parts of larger increased run-off due to deforestation or the drainage of wetlands.The loss of these chemical and geomorphological processes. natural sponges for floodwaters within the river basin increases the risk of extreme The timing and quality of natural floods are floods.WWF argues that many of these problems could be avoided if the recommen- vital to regulating a range of biological dations of the World Commission on Dams were applied to future dam projects. processes in wetlands. According to the paper, lack of adequate information means that dams are often Unfortunately, time and again floods on built without adequate spillways to cope with extreme floods. Dam managers often the Mahanadi have been treated as mere wait too long to make emergency releases of water during exceptionally heavy river symptoms of meteorological excess. This flows.“The primary purpose of their dams is to capture water in order to generate narrow urban-centric view has been con- hydroelectricity and/or provide water.To release the water into the river is to ‘waste’ structed and perpetuated by interests that it.” However, as the reservoir overfills they are forced to make releases of water that have willfully marginalized a spectrum of are far greater and more sudden than flows during the natural river flooding. flood utilization practices that were used for The full report is available at www.panda.org/livingwaters centuries in eastern India. In the 1930s, the

Page 4 World Rivers Review August 2001 Flood Control Going with the Flow on the Yangtze Wetlands Restoration Project Will Reduce Floods, Restore Habitat by Doris Shen

wetlands project in the lower Land reclamation was dramatically accel- Yangtze is working to restore erated after the Communist Party gained lakes and wetlands with the aim power in 1949. People were ordered to A of absorbing floodwaters. The “plant wheat as far as the eye can see.” project is expected to be more effective than Workers soon filled in Yangtze wetlands and the upstream Three Gorges Dam at dealing blocked their connection to the river. The with the river’s often deadly floods. reclaimed land was planted with high-yield Managed by the Beijing office of the grain and cotton, and farmers were resettled World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and there from poorer regions. This policy had local governments, the project is restoring devastating consequences, with flood dam- agricultural land back to its original state of ages growing every year. wetlands and lakes. The reclaimed areas will again serve as sponges of seasonal floodwa- Correcting Mistakes ters. In the first year of the restoration proj- The restoration of lower Yangtze lakes and ect, WWF reports that more than 30 species wetlands follows an important government of birds have already returned to the area. flood management order. Immediately after The restoration initiative plans to resettle Rare and endangered birds, such as this Siberian the devastating Yangtze floods of the sum- and rehabilitate half a million people and Crane, are returning to the restored wetlands. mer of 1998 which killed more than 3,000 restore 20,000 square kilometres of wetlands people, Premier Zhu Rongji issued an eight- in central China. WWF predicts that the pro- the Yangtze wetlands up to the 1950s. Pig point Yangtze flood management plan that gram should reduce the frequency and sever- and duck farming and seasonal market gar- signified a major shift in flood management ity of flooding, regenerate the ecosystem and dening are also being implemented. policy. The order included a ban on all log- give a boost to Asia’s most important winter- Flooding on the Yangtze has devastated ging in the uplands of Sichuan and Tibet, ing spot for migratory birds, such as the surrounding agriculture and industry in afforestation programs for upstream areas, Siberian white crane and the white stork. recent decades. The central government’s the restoration of downstream lakes and wet- Over the next five years Dongting and traditional response – to build ever-higher lands, and moving people out of floodplains Poyang lakes will be returned to their 1950 dikes to protect increasing settlement in the and restoring their livelihoods. size, their surface area increasing by a com- river’s floodplain – has failed to hold back Three Gorges Dam proponents have been bined 3,000 square kilometres. According to the tide. Dike failures along with increased quick to qualify every flood season to justify a July 19 report in the Far Eastern Economic land reclamation in the floodplains have the massive structure, which is too far Review, many of the farmers on the worsened China’s flood damage. upstream to actually handle most of the reclaimed land are so frustrated with annual Before the 1950s, floodwaters were watershed’s floods. During the 1998 flood flooding that they have required little per- absorbed by hundreds of small lakes north of season, Lu Youmei, chairman of Three suasion to move to higher lands. the river in the Jianghan plain, the larger Gorges Dam Corporation declared, “If the The US$610,000 restoration program con- Dongting and Poyang lakes to the south, and Three Gorges Project had already been com- sists of six pilot projects in Hunan, Hubei thousands of hectares of wetlands around the pleted, the problems of flood control would and Jiangxi provinces, and will include pro- lakes. Flooding has been exacerbated by have already been solved.” grams to develop alternative livelihoods for recent large-scale logging in the upper reach- In contrast, Premier Zhu Rongji’s Yangtze farmers, who will need to switch from rice es of the Yangtze in western China, creating flood policy response did not include Three cultivation to other agricultural products. increased storm water runoff which effects Gorges Dam as a flood control tool. One alternative is fishing which thrived in densely populated central and eastern China.

State and Federal Lawmakers Nix Auburn Dam Proposal by Charlie Casey

state senate committee recently against the project, arguing that the project tection and water. But with the dam’s hefty dismissed a proposal for a multi- could produce as little 60 megawatts of reli- multi-billion-dollar price tag, safety concerns billion dollar bond measure that able power, according to a 1992 report by (it is proposed in an active fault zone) and A would have asked voter approval Sacramento Municipal Utility District. In serious environmental impacts, the bond for financing construction of a dam on the past lives, the dam has been touted as a measure garnered little support. American River in Northern California. flood-control project for the capital city of Although the committee that tabled the Dam supporters tried to use the state’s Sacramento, but because cheaper and more bond – the state senate’s agriculture and energy crisis as a reason for building the seri- reasonable options are available, the dam is water committee – can usually be counted ously flawed 685-foot-high project. But again being described as a “multipurpose on to support major water projects, it may Friends of the River campaigned vigorously dam,” which will produce power, flood pro- continued on page 15

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 5 New Crisis, Old Tune: Brazil’s Energy Woes Accelerate Plans for New Dams by Glenn Switkes

n May, Brazilian President Fernando some of the world’s largest hydroelectric results were impressive: São Paulo registered Henrique Cardoso said he awoke to dams. Brazil is more than 90% dependent on an immediate energy savings of 22% follow- learn that his country was facing a hydropower for its electrical energy. ing the government’s conservation measures. I grave energy crisis. Perhaps President The Cardoso government responded by Most analysts agree that the privatization Cardoso’s advisors were reluctant to tell him decreeing mandatory energy rationing, of the Brazilian energy sector has resulted in what energy analysts had been warning for aimed at cutting electricity use by 20%. Resi- at least a temporary slowdown in invest- months – that the privatization of Brazil’s dential customers, who use 25% of the coun- ments in new power plants. Célio Bermann, power sector coupled with the country’s try’s electricity, were given “electricity quo- of the Electrical Energy Institute of the Uni- overwhelming dependence on hydropower tas” which, if violated, would result in puni- versity of São Paulo (IEE/USP), says, “Privati- for its electrical energy had made Brazil espe- tive shutdowns of their electricity service for zation of the public electrical utilities has cially vulnerable following two years of 3 days (6 days for repeat offenders). failed to meet its objectives.” The fragmenta- below-average rainfall. Industrial users, who consume 40% of the tion of state energy companies into generat- At the beginning of the six-month dry nation’s energy, were given more options ing, transmission, and distribution compa- season, reservoirs in the industrial southeast- with less-draconian consequences, including nies has created distortions in the pricing ern region had already fallen to below 30% voluntary shutdown of parts of their facili- structure, and eliminated incentives for ener- of their capacity. Projections showed that ties or identification of alternative electricity gy efficiency and demand-side management. water levels could fall below the 10% level sources – including the option to construct According to Bermann, “With energy genera- considered critical for driving the turbines in new dams or gas-fired power plants. The tion and distribution no longer controlled by the same company, expenditures on con- servation are harder to calculate.” The gov- ernment’s National Electrical Energy Agency Energy Alternatives:The MAB Proposal (ANEEL) requires the privatized companies With the Brazilian government’s strategy for combating the country’s energy crisis to invest a minimum of 1% of their receipts emphasizing construction of new large dams and natural gas power plants, Brazil’s on energy efficiency, but this has proven Movement of Dam-Affected People (MAB) has developed, with the Electrical Energy nearly impossible to monitor. Institute of the University of São Paulo, its own recommendations on steps Brazil Investors quickly bought up 70% of could take immediately to alleviate the crisis.They include: Brazil’s energy distribution companies, whose sale was heavily subsidized with low- 1. Reduce losses in the Brazilian electrical system. Currently, 16.5% of all electrical income loans from Brazil’s National Devel- energy generated is lost before reaching end-users.This compares unfavorably with opment Bank (BNDES) and through invest- the international “standard” of about 6%. MAB recommends that the government ments by public pension funds, but they provide incentives for companies to better insulate transmission lines, replace outdat- were slower to bid for hydroelectric dams ed or defective equipment, and take other measures to reduce losses. such as Porto Primavera which are burdened Potential gain in energy supply: 6,500 megawatts by billions of dollars of debt, or to risk investing hundreds of millions of dollars on 2. Modernize dams which are more than 20 years old. Investments should be made new dams. immediately to modernize components and systems. Transnational companies which had ini- Potential gain: 7,600 MW tially declared their intentions to build new 3. Construct small hydroelectric dams. Decentralized energy could be supplied to gas-fired generating stations using natural gas communities throughout Brazil by exploiting the country’s potential for small hydro piped from Bolivia also got cold feet, forcing dams. MAB warns that multiple dams on rivers should be carefully assessed for the government to evaluate various mecha- cumulative impacts. nisms to shield these companies from deval- Potential gain: 9,795 MW uations of the Brazilian currency, the real, against the dollar. Of 49 planned gas-fired 4. Cogeneration using biomass.The southeastern region of the country has a great power plants, only four will emerge from the potential for using sugar cane wastes or other plant residues for energy generation. drawing board by year’s end, according to Potential gain: 3,650 MW the government’s rosiest predictions. The availability of more than 27,000 MW represents a “bonus” equivalent to about 40% of Brazil’s current installed generation capacity, at far lower economic, environ- Kill the Messenger mental, and social cost than damming the nation’s rivers (some two-thirds of Brazil’s As in California, the Brazilian government’s new hydroelectric potential is in the Amazon).This figure does not include the enor- response to the crisis was to blame environ- mous potential of wind energy (24,900 MW in coastal Ceará state alone), installation mentalists for delaying the licensing of new of solar hot water heating systems and photovoltaics, or the benefits of energy con- generating stations. But NGOs’ suggestions servation, which must figure into any future national energy plan. for options other than large dams and more continued on page 11

Page 6 World Rivers Review August 2001 Latin America IDB-Financed Cana Brava Dam Causes Controversy in Brazil by Selma Barros

ana Brava Dam, a hydroelectric on the road. A small busi- project being constructed on nessman from the Itá area Brazil’s Tocantins River and distributed copies of an C financed by the Inter-American analysis by the area’s cham- Development Bank (IDB), has brought a Bel- ber of commerce that docu- gian company into conflict with Brazil’s mented the losses suffered Dam-Affected Peoples’ Movement (MAB). by local industries and On June 19, approximately 1,000 dam- businesses, and by family affected people mobilized in Minaçu (Goiás farmers who received no state) to denounce what they term intransi- compensation from gence on the part of the company building CEM/Gerasul. the project, which refuses to negotiate reset- The arrival of demon- tlement and compensation terms in an strators from Itá made the open and transparent manner with those company furious. Company who will lose their homes, businesses and president Vitor Paranhos jobs as a result of the dam. Because the threatened to walk out of demonstrators were surrounded by 200 the meeting “if anyone policemen, representatives of unions, the from MAB opens their Pastoral Land Commission, legislative mouth.” In response to the advisors, and the Bishop of Goiânia, company’s challenge to Dom Guilherme, were called to the site to MAB’s legitimacy, families try to diffuse tension and to support the affected by Cana Brava demonstrators. arrived by foot, boat, and

This is the third time the affected families Photo: Selma Barros horse to Minaçu in order to have held mobilizations at the dam site to Santina Ferreira, a “quilomba” affected by Cana Brava, is unhappy with sign a petition designating protest the project and send a message to compensation offered. MAB as their representative. the company responsible for the project. The Besides helping to orga- dam is expected to add 450 MW of installed to halt their activities in the area affected by nize demonstrations, MAB and a network of capacity to the North-South transmission the dam, under threat of being arrested and social and environmental NGOs have written corridor, with most of its energy being used their equipment seized. three letters to the IDB criticizing the Cana by the industrial complexes of the southern CEM/Gerasul has also refused to negoti- Brava project. In March 2000, IRN had urged regions of Brazil. ate compensation terms collectively and says the IDB not to finance the project until it will not recognize MAB as a spokesperson Tractebel responded to the concerns of local Ressetlement Underestimated for the dam-affected. CEM/Gerasul officials populations. This request was ignored by the MAB says that more than 1,000 families will have called MAB representatives “outsiders” IDB’s board, which approved $160 million in be affected by Cana Brava, four times more without legitimacy in the region. Families loans to Tractebel’s subsidiary CEM/Gerasul people than estimates in the company’s have charged intimidation on the part of the for the dam. Environmental Impact Study. Affected peo- company, which has brought military police On June 21 MAB and the Brazilian NGO ple complain of ridiculously low compensa- along with them for “security purposes” Network on Multilateral Financial Institu- tion being offered to them and the lack of when negotiating compensation terms. tions (Rede Brasil) and the Rios Vivos Coali- information regarding the criteria for deter- According to MAB, the company’s refusal tion handed IDB president Enrique Iglesias, mining the value of their land and improve- to recognize the right of families to organize who was visiting Brazil, a letter denouncing ments. The company has offered resettle- as part of the movement is due to the the failure of officials in the IDB’s Private ment on lands of poor quality, which will group’s victories elsewhere in Brazil. In the Sector department (PRI) to address the com- not permit the relocated families to survive. resettlement for Itá Dam, a project which plaints of populations suffering impacts The project, now under construction, con- was also constructed by CEM/Gerasul and from Cana Brava. Despite this fact IDB presi- tinues full speed ahead, but the company involved MAB in the negotiations, dam- dent Iglesias has said that “the private sector, building the dam, CEM/Gerasul (a sub- affected families received compensation and through new generating projects, will play a sidiary of the Belgian firm Tractebel) has resettlement lands which took into account fundamental role in the solution of Brazil’s now pushed its completion date ahead by the size of their families and the quality of energy crisis.” The PRI’s check book for 18 months. their original lands. financing private sector infrastructure proj- The company refuses to provide compen- During the June demonstration on Cana ects in Latin America has now been doubled, sation to those who traditionally work in the Brava, several busloads of supporters affected and may reach 10% of the IDB’s total loan region as artisanal miners (garimpeiros), and by Itá Dam arrived from the southern region portfolio in coming years. some have complained that they were forced of Brazil, after three days and three nights

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 7 Dams Lite? Run-of-River Projects No Panacea by Ryan Hoover

re huge reservoirs a thing of the Run-of-river dams are marketed a bit like ing a project. Run-of-river projects can, how- past? Today, a significant num- low-tar cigarettes or “lite” beer. They ever, have large dam walls, significant social ber of the world's proposed dams promise electricity, but with far fewer messy and environmental impacts, and big price A are being billed as “run of river,” side effects. Even the term “run-of-river” tags. In fact, although generally run-of-river which feature smaller reservoirs and, pre- evokes images of free-flowing cascades of means a smaller reservoir and more natural sumably, smaller impacts. Can we believe water rushing unhindered to the sea. It flows, the term is not clearly defined. the industry hype that run-of-river schemes seems to imply that the river is in charge, Most large dams are storage dams, mean- leave rivers in a relatively natural state, or unaltered and uncontrolled. In fact, dam ing they store water during the wet season are such projects just “engineering gim- proponents often use the terms “run-of- and release it during the dry season, or hold micks” as former WCD commissioner Ted river” and “minimal social and environmen- water when electricity demand is low and Scudder has called them? tal impacts” interchangeably when promot- release it when it is high. Run-of-river proj- ects, on the other hand, are theoretically designed to ensure that the amount of water flowing into them always equals the amount A Run-of-River Sampler of water flowing out of them (even though The following are existing or proposed run-of-river projects whose impacts may outweigh many of them store water for hours, days, or their benefits. even weeks at a time). Maheshwar Dam, India (Height: 35 meters) Proponents of run-of-river projects fre- This dam would displace 35,000 people and destroy the livelihoods of communities quently claim they do not require a reser- upstream. Rates of compensation are undervalued, and critics estimate that if com- voir. In reality, all run-of-river dams pensation were tied to full replacement value it would render the project economi- impound water, either to create “head” for cally unviable. hydroelectricity generation, to raise water Xeset Dam, Laos (10 meters) levels to the height of diversion intakes on This dam generates less than two thirds of its installed capacity and produces virtual- water projects or to create enough depth for ly no electricity during extended periods of the dry season. Driving output down fur- navigation. According to IRN’s Patrick ther is the government’s commitment to maintain downstream fisheries by releasing McCully, “In theory, no dam with gates water during the dry season rather than diverting it. should be considered run-of-river because Theun Hinboun Dam, Laos (25 meters) closing and opening gates implies storing In addition to the impacts on fisheries described in the article, this dam is generating and releasing water. In practice, dams with far less electricity than promised. some limited – but undefined – storage Mepanda Uncua Dam, Mozambique (Height unknown) capacity are referred to as run-of-river. It's a This $1.2 billion proposed dam on the Zambezi River would displace approximately sort of Alice in Wonderland, ‘it means exact- 2,000 pastoralist people from its 100 sq. km. reservoir in order to power a huge alu- ly what I want it to mean’ term.” Thus, the minum smelter hundreds of kilometers to the south.The dam would also further reg- 113-meter-high Pangue Dam in Chile which ulate the flow of the Zambezi where existing dams have already caused significant displaced 1,300 indigenous people qualifies damage to fisheries and the river's delta. as run-of-river, as does the 62-meter Bon- Popa Falls Dam, Namibia (8 meters) neville Dam in Oregon, or the 1.45-kilome- This recently revived 30MW scheme is located on the Okavango River, the source of ter-wide Cana Brava Dam in Brazil. the delicate Okavango Delta. During part of the year, it will leave the popular tourist A key selling point of run-of-river dams destination at Popa Falls virtually without water.The 2.9 sq. km. head pond will is the claim that their “head ponds” are require the relocation of some 90 residences and increase evaporation by 1.5 million cubic meters annually, an impact that has unknown consequences for the fragile Oka- small in comparison to storage reservoirs. vango Delta ecosystem. Large reservoirs result in physical and eco- nomic displacement, which adds consider- Cana Brava Dam, Brazil (66 meters) This 1,450-meter long dam on the Tocantins River will, if completed, displace more than ably to project costs and often incites public 1,000 families. Recent demonstrations concerning resettlement and compensation opposition. Such opposition can result in terms sparked confrontations with hundreds of police officers (see p. 9). costly delays and even project cancellations Chalillo Dam, Belize (30 meters) – all major concerns of the risk-averse pri- The head pond behind this dam will inundate 1,000 hectares of riverine habitat, vate investors and guarantee agencies who which is, according to some scientists, the only habitat of its type in all of Central are playing a growing role in the damming America.The dam would further threaten the endangered Scarlet Macaw and other of the world's rivers. Head ponds, on the rare species. other hand, are portrayed as small and Bonneville Dam, USA (62 meters) innocuous – they're just ponds, the term Constructed on the Columbia River in 1935, Bonneville seriously affected thriving seems to imply. salmon populations and other wildlife in the Columbia Basin.The dam also inundated Recent dams described as run-of-river, a number of cultural sites important to Native Americans. however, blur the distinction between head continued opposite

Page 8 World Rivers Review August 2001 Pak Mun: The river “runs” again Photos: of the Poor Assembly A youth activist celebrated the opening of the sluice gates of the Pak Mun Dam in This young boy shows off a Mekong catfish caught after the gates at Pak Mun June. People have been living at the protest village at the dam site since March Dam were opened. About 40 to 50 species of fish have reportedly returned for 1999 to pressure the government to decommission the dam. Finally, in June, the Thai the first time since the dam started operation.Villagers organized a ceremony to government agreed to open the dam's gates for a four month trial period. celebrate the return of the fish and the revival of a local fish market.

pond and reservoir. The “head pond” behind stream will no longer be able to utilize the stand-alone run-of-river dam may set off a Maheshwar Dam in India's Narmada Valley river through gravity-fed water systems. spate of dam building upstream in order to would force some 35,000 people from their maximize the efficiency of the run-of-river homes. In Mozambique, the proposed Underpowered, Over-Hyped project. This occurred in Chile, where con- Mepanda-Uncua Dam’s head pond would One of the most fundamental problems with struction of the giant Ralco storage dam on cover more than 100 square kilometers. run-of-river projects is that they promise the Biobío River was justified on the grounds In 1994, the Mekong River Secretariat more electricity than they can actually deliv- that the run-of-river Pangue Dam down- proposed the construction of a cascade of er. The final report of the World Commis- stream would consequently produce more nine “run-of-river” hydropower projects sion on Dams states, “Power benefits of run- electricity. Although Pangue was designed along the Mekong’s mainstem that would of-river hydropower plants may be much with Ralco in mind, project proponents did have inundated 1,000 square kilometers and lower than could be expected from their not publicly present the dams as a pair, thus displaced more than 60,000 people. installed capacity.” Because the electricity smoothing the way for an easier approval Although the scheme would have turned the output of run-of-river projects is dependent process at the World Bank. Mekong into a staircase of reservoirs, the on the amount of water flowing in the river project's documents never once used the at any given time, their power output may Environmental Impacts words “dam” or “reservoir.” be insufficient and unpredictable, which Run-of-river dams’ impact on the environ- Though run-of-river projects are smaller may render them economically infeasible. ment may not be as great as that of storage than most storage projects, they can still During the rainy season, or when a river is dams, but they do indeed have environ- have major impacts. As Indian activist Shri- in flood, run-of-river dams frequently cannot mental consequences, sometimes serious pad Dharmadhikary points out, “While use all the water that flows through them to ones. The havoc wreaked on delicate gorge there is some correlation between the size produce electricity. During the dry season, ecosystems by the Lower Kihansi and the impact of a project, this is by no the runoff in the basin is often far too low to Hydropower Project in Tanzania is a prime means a fixed equation.” For example, the produce electricity at full capacity. example of how a run-of-river project can proposed US$530 million Bujagali Dam on The Pak Mun Dam in Thailand exhibits result in a loss in species diversity. Because the Nile River in Uganda is being promoted both of these problems. It produces only the project diverted water from the 800- as run-of-river and would have only a 4.2 40MW of its 136MW capacity during the meter Kihansi waterfall, the endemic Kihan- sq.km. head pond, but it will deprive thou- high demand period in April-May. In very si Spray Toad, which survives on mist from sands of local people of their livelihoods, wet years, it faces another obstacle to power the falls, has been brought to the verge of possibly drive some rare fish species to generation. During some years, the Mekong extinction. The river's wetlands are drying extinction, destroy a culturally important River floods so severely that the river comes up, threatening rare plants. The US$275 waterfall and wipe out a $4 million per year up to the toe of the dam. The elevated water million project also directly affected about rafting industry. And the impacts of the tiny levels at the dam’s base mean that there is 22,000 villagers. 3MW Babilonia HEP run-of-river dam in not enough head pressure, lowering power Plant diversity is typically reduced along Honduras seem well out of proportion to its generation, and even occasionally forcing run-of-river head ponds, albeit less than size (see page 10). More than 100 families the power plant to be closed. along the banks of storage reservoirs. will lose their coffee plantations to the head Because run-of-river dams’ electricity pro- Researchers in Sweden noted that river pond, a 1,500-foot waterfall will be duction is based on the river’s flow rather reaches upstream of run-of-river projects destroyed, and communities living down- than a reservoir's releases, construction of a continued on page 15

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 9 Bloodshed in Babilonia Honduran Dam Project Shows Small Is Not Always Beautiful by Daniel A. Graham

small dam in Honduras has racked up major human rights violations, setting off a surpris- A ing wave of violence against local people opposed to the project. At press time, one person is dead and others have been attacked with guns and knives. All had publicly spoken out against the project. Residents of the municipality of Gualaco in eastern Honduras have taken to the capi- tal city of Tegucigalpa to protest the violence committed at the behest of Honduran- owned dam-building company Energisa. More than 200 people from Gualaco marched on the capitol building on July 4 to call public attention to Energisa’s lack of public consultation and other irregularities in its handling of the project. In the weeks since the July 4 march, both the central government and Energisa employees have met the protesters’ demands with a series of abuses, including Photo: Daniel Graham a recent attempt on the lives of Gualaco A peaceful demonstration by communities affected by the Babilonia hydropower project… mayor Rafael de Jesús Ulloa (who has pub- licly asserted that the company moved goal of attracting investors to Central Ameri- In addition to the project’s many ahead with the project without acquiring ca. Honduran Congressman Jack Arévalo, an impacts, local people bridle at the aggres- the necessary municipal approval), parish outspoken defender of Energisa, praises the sion and arrogance of Energisa representa- priest Fredy Cornelio Benítez Alvarez, and dam project as just the sort of development tives and by the national police they appear Sister Carmelita Luis David Pérez (both of Honduras needs, and accuses opponents of to have hired to stifle opposition. In Janu- whom have become outspoken critics of backwardness and political gamesmanship. ary, police jailed several dam protesters for the project). The US State Department has referred to the preventing passage by Energisa vehicles to Energisa, which has already begun con- anti-dam activists’ efforts as a “smear cam- their compound, in spite of the fact that struction of its small hydroelectric project on paign” against Energisa. the blocked road was a private one built by the Río Babilonia, has billed its Babilonia Citizens of Gualaco, however, insist the community members. In March, Gualaco Hydroelectric Project (BHP) as a socially Babilonia Hydroelectric Project is not as parish priest Fredy Benítez was stabbed, responsible, environmentally friendly, and environmentally and socially responsible as apparently in reprisal for his participation locally owned enterprise that will help Hon- its backers assert. They note that the project in a community forum that has been high- duras meet its energy needs. But critics claim is located squarely within the buffer zone of ly critical of Energisa’s activities. False crim- the project represents repression, not Sierra de Agalta National Park. They also inal charges have been leveled against vari- progress. Protestors have taken to calling it point to serious flaws in the project’s Envi- ous BHP opponents in what community “our other Mitch,” in reference to the devas- ronmental Impact Statement, including a members assert amounts to a hit list. tating hurricane of 1998. severe underestimation of the park’s biodi- The repression turned deadly on June 30, Energisa originally envisioned a 30- versity and a failure to account for the proj- when six armed security guards employed by meter-wide dam that would produce 4.4 ect’s downstream effects. The construction of Energisa shot and killed Carlos Roberto Flo- megawatts of power, but it recently stated the proposed dam would inundate 128 fami- res, a 29-year-old BHP opponent who others that it has scaled back the project in lies’ largely organic, small-scale coffee plan- assert was on Energisa’s “hit list,” while he response to public concerns and will now be tations, protected by Honduran law over all was at home preparing to bathe. Police building a smaller, run-of-river project that other land uses. Many locals have become so scarcely investigated Flores’s death, and their will produce just 3 megawatts. But the proj- afraid to approach the construction zone official report intimates that Flores’ death ect will still have serious impacts, which the with its heavily-armed guards that they had may have been the result of a two-way company appears to be unwilling to address to let this year’s coffee harvest rot on the shootout. Physical evidence gathered by this with local opponents. branches. The project design will also reporter suggests otherwise. The project has well-placed allies. The destroy a spectacular 1,500-foot series of Esteban Solís, lay minister of the Catholic Central American Bank for Economic Inte- waterfalls and eliminate the possibility of Church in the hamlet where Flores was killed, gration (CABEI), the principal financier for gravity-fed water systems for nine down- said on the day of Flores’s murder, “Over and the project, sees the dam as integral to its stream communities. continued opposite

Page 10 World Rivers Review August 2001 Latin America

over, we tried to dialogue with Energisa, to (Civil Committee of Popular and Indigenous organizations in Tegucigalpa, but dam oppo- lay our cards on the table, but nothing.” Organizations of Honduras). nents say they will refuse to return to One month after Flores’s murder and However, government representatives Gualaco until Energisa is dismantled and nearly four weeks after marching on the cap- from all sides have been far from sympa- the BHP scrapped. Some have questioned why peaceful opposition to such a small project is result- ing in such severe repression. There are more unanswered questions than hard facts on this aspect of the project. But one answer might lie in the terms arranged by the Hon- duran government with the project develop- ers. Reportedly, the Honduran Congress made a deal that if it revokes Energisa's license, the government will have to pay Energisa $26 million, about five times the value of the project. Meanwhile, on July 23, Mayor Ulloa, Father Fredy, and Sister Carmelita were shot at from a moving vehicle. El Ocotal commu- nity leader Isidro Zúniga said, “This is not a game. We cannot return to our homes until Energisa has been made to leave, or it may mean all our lives.” Back at the Río Babilonia, Isidro was asked what motivated him to so fiercely oppose the Babilonia Hydroelectric Project. He looked thoughtful, then said, “I don’t own any of the land they’re going to inun- Photo: Daniel Graham date. When the police came that day to …turned ugly when police got violent. arrest us at the bridge, I ran straight here to the river, and I sat down on that rock over ital, anti-dam opponents from Gualaco thetic to the groups’ call for government there.” Gazing for a long moment at the doggedly persist, but have received a cold intervention. On July 18, approximately 50 exuberant tropical vegetation around him, at shoulder both from the government and national police troops forcibly removed the the flock of parrots flying overhead, and the Energisa, even as they enjoy increasing soli- protestors and their sympathizers from the babbling waterfall nearby, he finally contin- darity and support from human rights capital plaza When the protestors tried to ued: “I sat on that rock for four hours, think- activists. The local protestors have recently retake the plaza that afternoon, more than ing about this river disappearing. Thinking been joined by human rights activists from 100 riot troops attacked them with tear gas, about all these communities that will be left the umbrella organization CONACIM rubber bullets, clubs and a water cannon. without water.” Then his voice failed him, (National Coordinator Against Impunity) Protestors then retreated to the headquarters and he turned away. and indigenous rights organization COPINH of sympathetic unions and human rights

Brazil Energy Crisis continued from page 6 thermal plants have basically been ignored errors, and environmental agencies usually again construct some large dams under the by the government (see box page 6). request revisions of these studies before per- umbrella of still-existing state companies like President Cardoso also issued a controver- mitting projects to move ahead. The new Eletronorte and Furnas, most of the gas sial decree in June to help fast-track the procedure would not appear to allow suffi- plants planned are expected to be built by licensing of new plants. Hydroelectric dams cient time for this work. international actors like Enron, El Paso, must now receive an environmental license Duke Power, AES, Iberdrola, and Endesa, within six months of the date when envi- Same Old Song along with state oil company Petrobras. ronmental impact studies (EIAs) are deliv- Of greatest concern to environmentalists is Brazil’s energy crisis will also have a sig- ered to authorities. The decision-making the fact that the government’s “new” strate- nificant impact on its neighbors, with a flur- period on new thermal plants is only four gy for solving the energy crisis is simply ry of plans being promoted for doubling the months. Given the difficulties in accessing more of the same. Instead of diversifying the capacity of the Bolivia-Brazil gas pipeline, EIAs and other technical project documents country’s energy supply and providing construction of huge natural gas plants in in both short-staffed government agencies incentives for renewable energy sources such Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay, just across and by civil society and NGOs, coupled with as solar, wind, small hydro and biomass, the Brazilian border where Brazil’s more legal requirements for public hearings during combined with more serious conservation demanding environmental laws will not the licensing process, these deadlines may be and energy efficiency measures, the over- apply, and the completion of the Yacyretá nearly impossible to meet. EIAs prepared by whelming focus continues to be on building Dam project and resuscitation of plans for consultants chosen by project constructors large dams and natural gas power plants. the Corpus Christi complex on the Paraná are often incomplete or contain factual While the government now plans to once river between Argentina and Paraguay.

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 11 Bui Dam Threatens Hippos and Humans by Julie Titone ven where it is pinched between impacted, if we can improve management of number of sources, the World Bank has high hills near the village of Bui, Bui park, why not generate that?” shown no interest in the Bui project to date. the tree-lined Black Volta River in Because, critics respond, there is no way VRA is paying $1.2 million to Acres Inter- E Ghana is impressively wide. to replace what is lost when a dam is built national (Canada) and BKS (South Africa) for Simon Beseh paddles his mahogany canoe and Ghana can’t afford to lose what little studies on the social and ecological impacts, there, where the current flows east after a land hasn’t been altered by farming, logging which are expected to take at least a year to long southerly slide. and mining. Less than 6% of the Oregon- complete. (As WRR readers know, Acres is The 15-year-old fisherman hopes to catch sized country has any protection from devel- also involved in plans to dam the Nile in enough fish so he can afford to attend high opment. Ghana already flooded a large area Uganda. It has also been brought to court in school. But he may soon be seeking another of its riverine land when, in the late 1960s, Lesotho for its alleged corruption in the source of money for books and uniforms. His it created the world’s largest reservoir behind Lesotho Highlands Water Project.) family may be forced to move from their Akosombo Dam. That dam flooded some Bui park’s mix of river and savannah riverside hamlet if Bui Dam is built. 8,500 square kilometers of the main Volta habitat is “a wealth of biodiversity that can- Asked if the dam is a good idea, Beseh River – some 5% of the country. Akosombo not be replaced,” said William Oduro, shakes his head fiercely: No. had huge social and environmental impacts, wildlife management professor at Ghana’s Far to the southeast, in the seaside and has produced significantly less Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and capital of Accra, Charles Mensa, energy than was projected. Technology. The park is home to many rare head of the Ghanaian think-tank Hydropower from the species, including hippos, various monkeys, the Institute of Economic Affairs, Black Volta has been part of lions, buffalo, monitor lizards, antelope and is just as adamant in believing Ghana’s energy plans for a leopards. The river provides spawning the dam must be built. With the half-century, but it took a grounds for many fish species, and its forests surplus energy it would produce, recent drought and politics support rare birds and butterflies. he says, the country could lure to resurrect the idea. In 1998 there VRA proposes buying land around the industry, which would provide jobs wasn’t enough water to operate park to make up for the loss of river habitat for its poverty-stricken people. As for those Akosombo Dam, resulting in blackouts. and promises money for park management. who object that the dam would flood rare Although the drought revealed that Ghana is Don Ackah, who represents Brown & Root in plant and animal habitat in Bui National dangerously dependent on hydropower (it Ghana, was quick to state that Bui is a nation- Park, Mensa says, “To hell with them!” gets 75% of its electricity from dams), the al park in name only. There are no good “We’re desperate,” says Mensa. “We die ruling party’s presidential candidate began to roads, no rooms to rent, no campgrounds, he when we catch malaria, when treatment champion the construction of the Bui Dam said. Illegal hunting takes a heavy toll. costs 2,500 cedis [35 cents].” in campaign speeches as a solution to black- “There’s nothing there. The population of Ghana recently changed governments in outs. Although the ruling party was defeated, animals is not that great,” Ackah said, adding peaceful elections for the first time. How will the new administration has chosen to honor that he had never been to the park. Ghana score when it comes to protecting its a 1999 agreement between VRA and the US Ghana’s national parks are operated by its environment? One answer lies in what hap- company Brown & Root to begin planning it. wildlife division. Director Nick Ankudey pens on the Black Volta. Brown & Root is the construction arm of refused to be interviewed about the dam. But “Everyone wants to look to Ghana to see oil giant Halliburton Co., where Dick in a 1999 newspaper article, Ankudey wrote if we move forward or backwards,” said Rich- Cheney was CEO before he ran for vice pres- that he supported the project provided thor- mond Evans-Appiah of the Volta River ident of the United States. For the Bui proj- ough environmental studies were done and Authority (VRA), Ghana’s energy agency. ect, Brown & Root formed a consortium noted VRA’s promise of money for park The VRA is paying for studies this year on with Alstom Hydro, a French firm whose improvements. While conceding that land the impact of a 326-megawatt dam, which it products include power generators, and Dra- would be lost, Ankudey said the reservoir hopes will begin construction in 2002. The gados, a Spanish contractor. would become a haven for the endangered dam would create a reservoir covering 26% The companies agreed to design the dam hippopotamus. He also said that the result- of the 700-square-mile national park. and seek financing. They would build and ing reservoir would provide tourist opportu- Evans-Appiah, who heads VRA’s construc- operate the dam, eventually transferring own- nities. However, such proposals have not tion office, is well aware that Bui would be ership to Ghana. VRA would pay for environ- materialized at other reservoirs in the region, one of the first new large dams since the mental studies and buy the dam’s electricity. in part because of malaria and other water- World Commission on Dams report released The country is in no position to borrow borne illnesses which increase in the still its findings and urged that any future dams money for the US$500 million project. It waters of tropical reservoirs. be built with extreme caution and intense recently swallowed national pride and public involvement. But VRA officials say accepted the title of Heavily Indebted Poor Flooding Hippo Habitat mitigation can make up for what’s lost when Country, a designation by the International Estimates of Bui’s hippo population range the dam is built. “We need 1,700 additional Monetary Fund and the World Bank that from 150 to 350. Another 50 or more inhab- megawatts of power generation over the provides relief for nations staggering under it the Black Volta upstream near Wechiau, next 20 years,” said Evans-Appiah. “If we burdens of debt. The project will be Ghana’s where a community-owned sanctuary has can show in environmental studies that we first private-sector hydrodam. According to a been created to protect them. These are can relocate all the fauna that will be continued opposite

Page 12 World Rivers Review August 2001 heavenward and with a voice of anticipa- tion, said: “Next, ceiling fans!” The pastor’s remote village has benefited from the Renewable Energy Services Project, sponsored by the UN Development Pro- gramme and the Global Environment Facility. The project’s goal is to lay the groundwork for a private sector photovoltaic industry. Project director Clement Abavana sees solar power as one way of helping the coun- try of nearly 20 million meet its energy needs. Solar panels already are popping up in the cities as the government raises the price of its long-subsidized hydropower. Charles Wereko-Brobby, an energy expert who advises President John Kufuor, talks enthusiastically about the potential of con- servation in Ghana. There’s wide agreement

Photo: Julie Titone that the country could reduce its energy Fisherman Simon Beseh and his family will resettled if Bui Dam is built. needs by 25% with more efficient industries, appliances and energy-conscious consumers. Ghana’s last hippos, among only eight or so gerous mammals – which must be kept wet Wereko-Brobby is not excited about Bui remnant populations in West Africa. and can weigh up to three tons. Dam, but he has high hopes for the planned Oduro, the wildlife professor, has studied John Mason, one of Ghana’s leading con- West Africa Gas Pipeline. The 370-mile hippos for 12 years. He believes they could servationists, believes the hippos could pipeline, which is much farther along than thrive in a Bui reservoir if it were not too big, migrate upstream on their own once con- Bui Dam, would pump natural gas under the if human presence were limited, and if the struction began. “The hippos will survive, ocean from Nigeria’s oil fields. “If I can get dam were operated with the hippos’ needs in one way or another,” said Mason. “They’re natural gas cheaply into Ghana, I can gener- mind. Hydropower reservoirs, with their the least threatened species at Bui.” ate electricity more cheaply than with a changing water levels and often steep sides, It’s hard to convince Ghanaians that dam,” he said. The pipeline would also aren’t known for the foliage-covered banks another hydro dam isn’t needed to keep improve regional air quality by reducing gas that hippos prefer, and a private sector dam’s their lights on, even though the frequent flaring in Nigeria. The multinational compa- need to be profitable may make a hippo- power outages here are almost always caused nies there flare almost 2 mn cubic feet of friendly management regime a long-shot. by a substandard transmission system. The natural gas daily – more than anywhere else Daniel Bennett, a research assistant at cost of extending transmission lines – not in the world. According to the World Bank, Scotland’s Aberdeen University who has the availability of power – keeps 46% of the gas flared in Nigeria is equivalent to total studied the Bui hippos, contends that special population from getting any electricity at all. annual power generation in sub-Saharan measures will be needed to provide food for As many as 2,600 people must be relocat- Africa. Major coastal industries eagerly await the grass-eating hippos if the dam is built. ed if the dam is built. Mike Anane, a writer the pipeline, which could be built as soon as Ankudey, the Director of Wildlife, who crusades against the dam, summed up 2004, including the Volta Aluminium disliked Bennett’s creation of a web site Bui-area sentiment by relating the reaction smelter, owned by America’s Kaiser Alu- suggesting his research was necessary he found in two adjacent villages. In Battor, minum. The company once consumed 95% because of the dam’s expected impacts. the chief was opposed to the dam. His peo- of Ghana’s hydropower. Ankudey accused Bennett of being ple were among the 80,000 forced to relocate Besides considering energy alternatives as unethical and deceptive, and withdrew when Akosombo Dam was built. Many of they ponder the need for a dam, Ghana’s Bennett’s permit to work in the park this those who moved still do not have electrici- officials will need to consider the effects of spring. The angry researcher revised ty, and battles over land compensation con- global warming on its rivers. Recent climate his web site (http://hippo.50megs.com) to tinue three decades later. change studies of three Ghanaian river include addresses where people can write In the village of Bui, the chief was excited basins predicted decreases in rainfall and to comment on the dam. He wrote, “Bui at the prospect of the dam, Anane said, groundwater recharge of rivers. Coupled National Park has very few friends and I feel because he expects its builders to provide with increased water use by a growing popu- obliged to speak because I believe that it is him with a large new house. lation, that led Ghana’s EPA to warn of seri- the last fragment of pristine wilderness in ous consequences, including reduced the entire Volta system and harbors an Alternatives to the Dam hydropower generation. exceptionally rich fauna and flora that is On the opposite side of the country from In short, Ghana could sacrifice the heart of in imminent danger of being destroyed the dam site, the Rev. Andrew Yambif Bui National Park for hydropower, then lack a without ever being documented.” beamed as he spoke about the solar panels in steady supply of water to run the turbines. Bennett scoffs at VRA talk of relocating the courtyard of his church. Solar energy the hippos. Other biologists agree it would allows for evening services when there could The author’s work in Ghana was sponsored by be expensive and difficult to move the ani- be none before, he said, because power lines the Ford Motor Company Fund and the Interna- mals – considered one of Africa’s most dan- don’t reach his village. Yambif raised his eyes tional Center for Journalists.

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 13 projects supported by the bank are directly dams in Wisconsin, Maine and California, threatening the livelihoods of rural people and addresses many issues and concerns IN PRINT throughout the basin.The book uncovers that come up in the dam repair/removal the real human impact of the rapid social decision-making process.The video high- and economic change being driven by insti- lights before-and-after stories of river Handbook of Water Use and Conser- tutions like the ADB. Competition for nat- restoration in three communities. vation, by Amy Vickers. Published 2001, ural resources – rivers, forests and land – is Both of these resources focus on small WaterPlow Press. $99.95 (order from identified as the most important site of dam removal in the US, but could offer www.waterplowpress.com). struggle between poor rural communities lessons for other parts of the globe.The The average American uses 101 gallons and the new global forces. It draws together video is ideal for introducing skeptical indi- of water per day (gpd), almost three times a range of writings and analysis from local viduals to the notion of dam removal as a what an Egyptian uses and about double and international organizations, institutions logical, attractive option in river manage- that of the average Thai citizen. Ironically, and individuals that explore this theme. ment.The handbook is an excellent resource the dry Western states have some of the The title is a metaphor for the annual to guide someone through the process of highest usage – about 155 gpd in Albu- cycles of the Mekong River. Millions of peo- helping a community decide whether to querque, NM and a whopping 230 gpd per ple live out their lives along its banks, tend- restore a river by removing a small dam.The person in Phoenix,AZ.With the typical ing gardens, fishing, washing and fetching toolkit takes great pains to avoid overtly American home using 1,000 gallons per year water. Its floods bring fertile silts and sup- advocating for dam removal, but the mes- just on their lawns, what’s a drylands water port fisheries that form a vital link in the sage comes through loud and clear – dam planner to do? chain of life of subsistence communities removal can be the best option to deal with First, they should turn to this book and along the river’s 4,800-kilometre length.The dams that simply don’t make sense. its 464 pages of solutions on how to trim publication is a wake-up call for all donor wasteful water usage.The author asserts countries to the ADB, and the need for Hydrogen Futures:Toward a Sustain- that “Systemwide demand reductions of at public pressure to ensure the bank able Energy System, by Seth Dunn. least 25% from conservation may be a rea- becomes increasingly accountable for the Published 2001 by Worldwatch Institute. $5 sonable goal for many North American money it spends in the international arena. (order from www.worldwatch.org). water utilities.” No one is spared from Vick- What do Iceland, Hawaii, Germany and ers’ water-conserving plan: she finds serious Dam Removal:A Citizen’s Guide to Japan have in common? All are working dili- water savings for the smallest lawn to the Restoring Rivers (book) by River Alliance gently to convert to a “hydrogen economy,” largest farm, from urban zoos to industrial of Wisconsin & Trout Unlimited (2000), and based on fuel cell technologies now being cooling towers.The handbook describes Taking a Second Look: Communities developed by a number of companies.These technologies and practices to conserve and Dam Removal (video) by the River devices could eventually replace internal water in homes, businesses, industries and Alliance of Wisconsin,Trout Unlimited, combustion engines and fuel everything farms. Information is clear, well organized, American Rivers, the Atlantic Salmon Feder- from power plants to personal electronics. and thorough.The book offers 10 key steps ation & the Natural Resources Council of All the major automakers are racing to have to a successful water conservation program, Maine (2000), by Green Fire Productions fuel-cell-powered vehicles on the market: describes how to conduct water audits, gives (order from www.wisconsinrivers.org/Small- Toyota recently shocked the industry by data on the water- and energy-savings and Dams/toolkit-order-info.html, or e-mail wis- announcing it would start selling fuel-cell costs of the measures described, provides [email protected]). vehicles in Japan by 2003, and GM aims to case studies of good examples to follow, and This toolkit is a good package for anyone be the first car company to sell one million much more.With this book, any excuses for interested in learning about options for dam fuel cell vehicles (it also just came out with wasteful water usage go down the drain. removal.The 130-page handbook offers a a washing-machine-size fuel cell to power a step-by-step process for pursuing dam single house).The devices have the potential Breaking the Banks:The removal as a river restora- to address the energy evils of air pollution, Impact of the Asian Develop- tion tool. It climate change and geopolitical instability ment Bank and Australia’s includes chap- due to oil-import dependence. Role in the Mekong Region, ters on Fuel cells are powered by hydrogen, by Jonathan Cornford and researching a the most abundant element on the planet, Michael Simon. Published 2001, dam of concern, and are a virtually clean technology – if Oxfam Community Aid gathering infor- the hydrogen is derived cleanly. But as this Abroad.AU$17.95 (order from mation on repair report reveals, governments and industry http://www.caa.org.au or email and removal are “keeping one foot in the hydrocarbon [email protected]). options, tools to economy” and are pursuing a route that Breaking the Banks use in pursuing a would use gasoline as the source of hydro- explores the activities of dam removal, devel- gen, rather than the cleaner method based one of the most influential oping a strategy and on natural gas or renewables. Not surpris- yet little known institutions tactics to advocate ingly, the Bush administration is at the bot- in the Asia-Pacific: the for removal, and tom of the heap when it comes to fuel-cell Asian Development Bank. more.The 22-minute innovation, and is currently allocating five This book looks at the video Taking a Second times more for R&D in “clean coal” than role of the ADB within the Look features case for fuel cells, and 10 times more for countries of the Mekong region, and docu- studies of communities nuclear. ments how dams, roads, forestry and other that have removed continued opposite

Page 14 World Rivers Review August 2001 Colombian Activist continued from page 1 aid to Colombia would have devastating bodies in their traditional way, and marched implementation of the negotiated agree- consequences for the unarmed civilian popu- one behind the other, women on one side of ments. The Minister of the Interior’s visit to lations caught in the crossfire. He also spoke the road and men on the other for hours in the region also prompted the creation of a of the impacts that Urrá Dam had brought the hot and steamy region. Clarification Commission, which includes to his community. Twenty days after Kimy’s kidnapping, the UN High Commissioner in Colombia, Kimy’s disappearance caused a flood of after intensive pressure from Colombians the office of the Attorney General, and the letters to the Colombian government from and the international community, the gov- Catholic Church, to investigate the facts groups and individuals around the world. ernment responded by sending a high level related to Kimy’s disappearance. As this arti- 800 indigenous people also mounted a commission and the Minister of the Interior. cle goes to press, this matter is pending until search of nearby farms and ranches to try The results of the visits were a commitment the new Attorney General takes office. and locate him. The Embera painted their by the Minister of the Interior to assure the

Auburn Dam continued from page 5 have backed down after the bill’s sponsor, US Congress Weighs In Word has it that Congressional leaders Senator Rico Oller (R-San Andreas), could Just a few weeks after the demise of the didn’t want to be associated with yet anoth- not answer basic questions about the dam. Auburn legislation in California, the Auburn er anti-environmental issue. At press time, In addition, a federal report done several Dam’s most obsessive booster, Congressman however, two other troubling Doolittle mea- years ago, “The American River Water John Doolittle (a Republican representing sures remain in the Appropriations bill, Resources Investigation” by the US Bureau the dam site area), was forced to withdraw including one that halts commercial rafting of Reclamation (1997), suggested that more his highly controversial proposal to autho- on the north and middle forks of the Ameri- water could be created at a lower cost rize yet another feasibility study for the dam. can River pending environmental studies on through a conjunctive use program than The congressman’s stealth move, which tied the impacts of rafting. The affected segments through a new reservoir on the American the study’s approval to legislation to of river are identical to those threatened by River. improve ongoing flood protection for Sacra- the dam. With an estimated 12,000 people In the past decade, at least five similar mento, was hidden in a giant Congressional enjoying commercial river trips and witness- Auburn Dam bond proposals have been appropriations bill. ing the wonders of the river canyons every rejected because of the project’s high costs But the move brought Doolittle nothing year, it is perhaps not surprising that the (it would be the nation’s most expensive but embarrassment after Sacramento offi- congressman is hoping to put a stop to dam ever), questionable benefits and seri- cials, along with Rep. Robert Matsui (D-CA) them. Friends of the River is working to have ous environmental damage. More than 45 and some of Doolittle’s Republican col- that provision deleted, too. miles of the north and middle forks of the leagues, rallied against the provision. They American River would be flooded by the easily argued that such a linkage could spell The author is with the Sacramento-based group dam. If the bill is not taken up again this doom to the city’s much-needed flood safe- Friends of the River. For more information about year by the state legislature – a likely sce- ty program, which can’t afford to be Auburn Dam, visit www.friendsoftheriver.org or nario – it will mean the end of yet another weighted down with such a politically contact Ron Stork at (916) 442-3155 x220 or skirmish in the long Auburn Dam war. charged project. [email protected].

Run-of-River continued from page 9 hosted 15 percent fewer species after ill-conceived fish pass of little use. Some 100 boun Dam in Laos, which resulted in a seri- damming “because regulated shorelines were additional species in the Mun were negatively ous reduction of local communities’ fish narrower than natural riparian zones.” affected by the dam’s construction, and the catch after it was constructed, and the pro- Fisheries are harmed just as easily by run- fish catch directly upstream of the dam has posed Bujagali Dam in Uganda, which will of-river projects as they are by storage dams. declined 60-80% since the project’s comple- inundate a falls that harbors rare endemic In both cases, the dam wall presents a barrier tion, resulting in an economic loss to villagers fish species. The Ugandan government to migrating fish. of about $1.4 million per year, according to approved Bujagali contingent on the project The Pak Mun Dam has wiped out 56 the WCD. Affected villagers successfully lob- including a fish pass. However, the project's species of fish from the Mun River because bied their government to open the gates of Panel of Experts writes, “The Panel knows of the dam blocks their rainy season migration the dam this year, which brought immediate no cases anywhere in Africa where fish lad- routes, the 60 sq.km. head pond inundated improvements to their fish catches. ders have been used successfully.” their spawning grounds, and the species’ Other run of river schemes with serious Clearly, run-of-river projects can have seri- inability to jump has rendered the project's fisheries impacts include the Theun-Hin- ous impacts, and must be given the same scrutiny as other dams. Run-of-river dams may be less destructive than storage dams, but they In Print continued from page 14 can also be just as capable of pushing species Hydrogen Futures lists 10 policies that innovations that have potentially enormous to extinction or families further into poverty. governments can introduce to help build a long-term benefits – just as the US govern- As with other large dams, run-of-river projects hydrogen economy, from tax incentives for ment did with transistors, computers and should be subject to review against the World vehicles to phasing out the roughly $300 the Internet.” Commission on Dams' guidelines. billion spent annually to subsidize fossil-fuel With Bush in office, it will take intense use worldwide.“Governments should has- public pressure to ensure these ideas are Research assistance was provided by Kapala Hoge. ten the hydrogen transition by promoting even heard. Iceland, here we come?

World Rivers Review August 2001 Page 15