This book assesses river health in the Lancang River Basin with regard to the impacts of hydropower projects. It studies key components of the transboundary effects of Chinese dams on the Lancang River including its hydrology, sediment transport, water temperature, and fish community. It also investigates the specific impacts of hydropower on women’s lives and livelihoods, and factors that influence women’s participation in river health management. In closing, the lessons learned regarding environmental protection and hydropower development in the Lancang River Basin are shared, e.g. with hydropower developers and regulators in Laos.
This book anchors its arguments in Article 20 of the Watercourses Convention and explores consistencies and inconsistencies in parallel definitions, substantive and procedural obligations and institutional arrangements in IWL, and the Ramsar and Biodiversity Conventions with respect to the protection and preservation of ecosystems of shared inland waters. Dr. Yang Liu argues that the all-around informed and integrated application of IWL and MEAs is essential for the effective protection and preservation of shared inland water ecosystems. However, the degree of cross-fertilization of parallel provisions should be examined on a case-by-case basis in light of the legal analytical framework deployed in this study.
This book conceptualises the ongoing hydropower expansion in Southwest China as a socio-political and transnational project transcending the construction of dams. Chapters in this volume are organised around three sections spanning hydropower and resettlement governance, rural livelihoods, and international relations connected to China’s hydropower expansion. Dam projects of various scales are analysed as infrastructure projects that shape peoples’ livelihoods, the environment, and China’s relations with Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Renewable Electricity and Sustainability: Prospects in Developing Economies is the first book of its kind to be dedicated entirely to the needs of emerging economies. It provides readers with a comprehensive review of current renewable energy technologies, their status in emerging economies, and the potential for sustainable renewable electricity generation in those countries. A multidisciplinary approach is used to assess the needs and challenges of each region, which is supported by quantitative analyses of the current and future potential for renewable electricity generation. Real-world examples are also provided from the respective electricity sectors of each region. This resource is a unique reference for graduates and researchers on the social, technical and economic landscape of renewable energy in emerging economies and would also be useful to NGO’s and policymakers in developing countries or those working in sustainable development. Focuses specifically on the renewable energy and sustainability needs of developing economies Explores the renewable energy potential of developing countries and how this can be converted to sustainable electricity generation, supported by quantitative analyses and real-world case studies Addresses energy efficiency, energy management and the socioeconomic aspects of renewable electricity generation in developing countries, in addition to each renewable energy resource
This book describes the entire process of environmental impact assessment for hydropower and dam projects, not from a legal or regulatory point of view, but from a very applied one, based mainly on the personal experience of the author, who is involved in this field of work since over 40 years, by describing the different steps of such an assessment, covering all major aspects to be dealt with. The focus is on environmental issues, while the other main subject—social impacts—is mentioned here only briefly. It will be of interest not only for ESIA (Environmental and Social Impact Assessment) practitioners, be they consultants involved in the preparation of such studies or staff members of environmental protection agencies having to come to decisions based on them, but also for engineers and planners involved in such projects, developers, and people interested in questions related to energy, environment, and climate change. Overall, this book aims at contributing to put the discussion about hydropower and dam projects on a more objective level.
This timely Handbook draws together insightful analyses of natural resource management challenges and solutions in the face of sustainable development targets and a changing global climate.
China is home to half of the world's large dams and adds dozens more each year. The benefits are considerable: dams deliver hydropower, provide reliable irrigation water, protect people and farmland against flooding, and produce hydroelectricity in a nation with a seeimingly insatiable appetite for energy. As hydropower responds to a larger share of energy demand, dams may also help to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels, welcome news in a country where air and water pollution have become dire and greenhouse gas emissions are the highest in the world. Yet the advantages of dams come at a high cost for river ecosystems and for the social and economic well-being of local people, who face displacement and farmland loss. This book examines the array of water-management decisions faced by Chinese leaders and their consequences for local communities. Focusing on the southwestern province of Yunnan—a major hub for hydropower development in China—which encompasses one of the world's most biodiverse temperate ecosystems and one of China's most ethnically and culturally rich regions, Bryan Tilt takes the reader from the halls of decision-making power in Beijing to Yunnan's rural villages. In the process, he examines the contrasting values of government agencies, hydropower corporations, NGOs, and local communities and explores how these values are linked to longstanding cultural norms about what is right, proper, and just. He also considers the various strategies these groups use to influence water-resource policy, including advocacy, petitioning, and public protest. Drawing on a decade of research, he offers his insights on whether the world's most populous nation will adopt greater transparency, increased scientific collaboration, and broader public participation as it continues to grow economically.
This open access book focuses on the Salween River, shared by China, Myanmar, and Thailand, that is increasingly at the heart of pressing regional development debates. The basin supports the livelihoods of over 10 million people, and within it there is great socio-economic, cultural and political diversity. The basin is witnessing intensifying dynamics of resource extraction, alongside large dam construction, conservation and development intervention, that is unfolding within a complex terrain of local, national and transnational governance. With a focus on the contested politics of water and associated resources in the Salween basin, this book offers a collection of empirical case studies that highlights local knowledge and perspectives. Given the paucity of grounded social science studies in this contested basin, this book provides conceptual insights at the intersection of resource governance, development, and politics of knowledge relevant to researchers, policy-makers and practitioners at a time when rapid change is underway. - Fills a significant knowledge gap on a major river in Southeast Asia, with empirical and conceptual contributions - Inter-disciplinary perspective and by a range of writers, including academics, policy-makers and civil society researchers, the majority from within Southeast Asia - New policy insights on a river at the cross-roads of a major political and development transition
The water resources of the Mekong river catchment area, from China, through Thailand, Cambodia and Laos to Vietnam, are increasingly contested. Governments, companies and banks are driving new investment in roads, dams, diversions, irrigation schemes, navigation facilities, power plants and other emblems of conventional "development." Their plans and interventions pose multiple burdens and risks to the livelihoods of millions of people dependent on wetlands, floodplains, fisheries and aquatic resources.
Due to global transformational trends, such as population growth, economic development and climate change, energy, water, land and human resources are increasingly under pressure to support societal development and to maintain necessary services. Decision makers need improved tools in order to be better informed about trade-offs and synergies between different development and management choices, and to help them identify options on how to sustainably manage resources. This report proposes a way to carry out a water-energy-food nexus assessment approach in order to: a) understand the interactions between water, energy and food systems in a given context, and b) evaluate the performance of a technical or policy intervention in this given context. The ultimate goal of the nexus assessment is to inform nexus related responses in terms of strategies, policy measures, planning and institutional set-up or interventions.
