Report

Completed in 1996, the Nam Song Diversion Dam was funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) at a cost of US$31.5 million. It was designed to divert water to the Nam Ngum reservoir to increase the generating capacity of Nam Ngum Dam. The impacts caused by the project include severe declines in fisheries for over 1,000 families and loss of boats and fishing nets, loss of agricultural land through flooding or erosion, and lack of clean washing and bathing water. So as to determine whether the ADB and the Government of Laos have recognized the extent of the impacts caused by the Nam Song Dive

The table below lists existing and planned large (greater than 10 MW) hydropower projects in Laos. The table is based on the Lao Government Department of Energy Promotion and Development's “Electric Power Plants in Laos as of January 2009”, available at: http://www.poweringprogress.org/index.php?option=com_jotloader&task=file.... This document is updated regularly by International Rivers and TERRA with new information from news reports, official project documents and other sources. Please send comments, questions or corrections to berklee@internationalrivers.org and fer@te

This review of the August 2007 drafts of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Environmental Management and Monitoring Plan for the Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project was conducted by independent researcher David Blake. According to Blake, the EIA fails to adequately examine impacts from the existing Theun-Hinboun Hydropower Project such as loss of land from erosion and increased flooding. These impacts will only intensify under the expansion project. Nor does it discuss the extent to which mitigation and compensation measures implemented to date have dealt with the impacts. The review co

The proposed Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project in central Laos will displace up to 4,800 people and negatively affect another 48,441 people living downstream, on project construction lands and in host villages. This review highlights key concerns about the August 2007 Draft Final Resettlement Action Plan for the Theun-Hinboun Expansion Project prepared by Norplan. It concludes that the resettlement plan is so poorly conceived and developed that it cannot and should not constitute a sound basis for decision-making. The plan obfuscates and downplays project impacts and fails to present a viable pl

The Seraiki translation of Dams, Rivers and Rights, prepared by SUNGI Development Foundation, Pakistan, is the perfect tool for Seraiki-speaking people threatened by dam construction. It tells the stories of people affected by dams and the stories of people who fight for their rights and their rivers. The guide shares lessons and ideas from the growing international anti-dam movement and outlines successful struggles against destructive dams. It tells stories of people all over the world who say no to dams and who demand "Don’t DAMage our lives."

The Urdu translation of Dams, Rivers and Rights, prepared by SUNGI Development Foundation, Pakistan, is the perfect tool for Urdu-speaking people threatened by dam construction. It tells the stories of people affected by dams and the stories of people who fight for their rights and their rivers. The guide shares lessons and ideas from the growing international anti-dam movement and outlines successful struggles against destructive dams. It tells stories of people all over the world who say no to dams and who demand "Don’t DAMage our lives."

Executive summaryA confusing maze of new funds, programs, and strategies (both within Africa and from abroad) is now prioritizing large dam development as a solution to Africa's pressing needs for improved supplies of energy and water. Potentially huge amounts of money could be funnelled into African large dam projects in coming years, with the potential to greatly exceed the amounts allocated for rural electrification and water supply. Across the continent, numerous dams are being fast-tracked as priority projects, but the process by which most are prioritized and developed has been nontransp

Download the report (PDF, 660KB) The Government of Ethiopia faces the daunting challenge of providing energy to fulfill the needs of its people and support much-needed economic growth. Ethiopia’s electricity master plan wants to increase supply five-fold over the next five years, based almost exclusively on large hydropower dams. A large proportion of the new supply, which cannot be fully absorbed by the domestic market, is earmarked for regional export. Ethiopia’s boom in hydro dam development could lead to major social, environmental and economic harm unless safeguard

Chinese investment in Cambodia's hydropower sector is threatening some of the country's most precious ecosystems and the livelihoods of thousands of people, according to a new research report released today. The research report, prepared by International Rivers and the Rivers Coalition in Cambodia, highlights the growing interest in large-scale hydropower dam development by Cambodian decision makers backed mainly by Chinese project developers and financiers. In April 2006, China announced a US$600 million aid package to Cambodia, almost half of which financed the Kamchay Dam, Cambodia's first