STRATEGIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF THE HYDROPOWER SECTOR FIVE INFLUENTIAL CASES India, Myanmar, Pakistan, Rwanda, Viet Nam Publication by: The Netherlands Commission for Environmental Assessment (NCEA). Edited by Arend Kolhoff, NCEA and Roel Slootweg, SevS Contributions by David Annandale, Matthew Corbett, Kate Lazarus, Lothar Linde, Asha Rajvanshi, François Xavier Tetero May 2021 Strategic Environmental Assessment for More Sustainable Development of the Hydropower Sector The Salween River Myanmar - 1 - CONTENTS Summary for Decision-Makers…………………….…………………………….………………………………………………………………..……….…………....5 Summary for Dam Owners………………………………………………………..………………………………………………………………..……….…………….8 Executive Summary……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..……….…………..11 1 INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................................................................15 1.1 TOWARDS MORE SUSTAINABLE HYDROPOWER ..........................................................................................................................15 1.2 METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................................................................16 1.3 CHARACTERISTICS OF SEA ...................................................................................................................................................17 1.4 INVENTORY OF SEAS ..........................................................................................................................................................20 FIVE CASES 2 SEA FOR HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT IN AZAD JAMMU KASHMIR STATE PAKISTAN .............................22 2.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................22 2.2 BACKGROUND: CONTEXT AND ISSUES .....................................................................................................................22 2.3 APPROACH AND METHODS USED ...........................................................................................................................23 2.4 RESULTS AND LESSONS LEARNT .............................................................................................................................24 2.5 MEASURING THE INFLUENCE OF THE SEA ...............................................................................................................29 3 SEA FOR HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT PLANNING IN ALAKNANDA AND BHAGIRATHI BASINS, UTTARAKHAND STATE INDIA .......................................................................................................................31 3.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................31 3.2 BACKGROUND: CONTEXT AND ISSUES .....................................................................................................................34 3.3 APPROACH AND METHODS USED ...........................................................................................................................36 3.4 RESULTS AND OUTCOMES ...................................................................................................................................40 4 SEA FOR THE HYDROPOWER SECTOR MYANMAR .......................................................................................45 4.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................45 4.2 BACKGROUND: CONTEXT AND ISSUES .....................................................................................................................46 4.3 APPROACH AND METHODS USED ...........................................................................................................................49 4.4 ISSUE SCOPING .................................................................................................................................................49 4.5 RESULTS AND OUTCOMES ...................................................................................................................................56 4.6 LESSONS LEARNT ...............................................................................................................................................59 5 MAINSTREAMING ENVIRONMENT INTO POWER PLANNING: SEA FOR POWER DEVELOPMENT PLAN VII VIET NAM ....................................................................................................................................................62 5.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................62 5.2 BACKGROUND: CONTEXT AND ISSUES .....................................................................................................................63 5.3 APPROACH AND METHODS USED ...........................................................................................................................64 5.4 RESULTS AND LESSONS LEARNT .............................................................................................................................72 6 SEA FOR MANAGEMENT PLAN OF UPPER NYABARONGO CATCHMENT RWANDA .....................................76 6.1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................................76 6.2 BACKGROUND: CONTEXT AND ISSUES .....................................................................................................................76 6.3 APPROACH AND METHODS USED ...........................................................................................................................81 6.4 RESULTS AND LESSONS LEARNT .............................................................................................................................85 7 SEA’S INFLUENCE ON DECISION-MAKING AND LESSONS LEARNT .............................................................................88 7.1 MAIN AREAS OF INFLUENCE .................................................................................................................................................88 7.2 LESSONS LEARNT ...............................................................................................................................................................89 7.3 AGENDA FOR THE COMING YEARS ..........................................................................................................................................91 - 2 - DOCUMENTS CITED AND USED ............................................................................................................................................... 95 ANNEX 1: BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF OTHER TOOLS SUPPORTING HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT ................................................. 98 ANNEX 3: LIST OF SEAS APPLIED FOR POLICIES, PLANS OR PROGRAMMES OF THE HYDROPOWER SECTOR ............................. 105 ANNEX 4: LIST OF SEAS APPLIED FOR MULTI-SECTOR POLICIES, PLANS OR PROGRAMMES, INCLUDING HYDROPOWER .......... 107 ANNEX 5: LIST OF CIA STUDIES APPLIED FOR HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT ......................................................................... 108 ANNEX 6: OUTPUTS, OUTCOMES AND IMPACTS OF SEA IN FIVE CASE STUDIES ...................................................................... 110 - 3 - Gibe III Dam Ethiopia - 4 - SUMMARY FOR DECISION-MAKERS Towards a more sustainable hydropower • The SEAs contributed to cooperation and development exchange between different ministries, in Hydropower is expected to remain a dominant particular those concerned with environment worldwide player in the energy sector, given the and energy. rapidly growing energy demand of low- and middle- • The SEAs provided clarity to project developers income countries. The need for a transition towards concerning go and no-go areas and the climate neutral energy production, and the necessity environmental and social issues associated with for pumped storage and grid stability when highly certain sites. fluctuating wind and solar power generation become • The SEAs influenced decision-making prominent, further influence the role of hydropower. profoundly and also had other important spin- off impacts such as new legislation or easing of Negative impacts of individual hydropower projects social tensions. Examples are the exclusion of can (partly) be avoided, mitigated and compensated, sensitive areas from hydropower development and positive impacts can be enhanced, by making and avoidance of investments in hydropower use of ESIA. However, most impacts are the result of projects at sites with high social and the location of a hydropower project, for instance environmental risks. tributaries located in a national park may be more sensitive to the effects of a hydropower project, than In conclusion, SEA can be an effective and efficient those outside a park. Furthermore, cumulative tool to support more sustainable development of impacts of a number of projects in a river basin can hydropower. be considerable, which may go unnoticed in the ESIA for an individual project. Cumulative and negative Lessons for future SEAs supporting hydropower impacts can be avoided or mitigated by applying SEA development to support strategic planning for hydropower.