Powering a Sustainable Future: The Role of Large Hydro in Sustainable Development
Date:
Wednesday, October 27, 2004
This report, prepared for the "UN Hydropower and Sustainable
Development Symposium" in Beijing, China on October 27–29, 2004,
examines the role of large hydro in sustainable development and
suggests principles to ensure cost–effective, environmentally
sustainable and socially equitable development of the world’s energy
resources.From the report:
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One of the greatest global challenges facing the 21st century
is how to improve the livelihoods of the two billion people who
currently have inadequate or no access to modern energy services, while
simultaneously reducing the energy sector’s environmental impact. The
large hydropower lobby is promoting their technology as a key solution
for meeting this challenge. The social, economic and environmental
impacts of large hydropower, however, highlight the serious limitations
of large hydropower in sustainable energy development. This paper
examines the role of large hydropower in sustainable development and
suggests principles to ensure cost–effective, environmentally
sustainable and socially equitable development of the world’s energy
resources...
