social benefits of hydropower projects

8/13/2019 Social Benefits of Hydropower Projects

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Enhancement of Social Benefits of Hydropower Projects

The Hydropower Projects will produce substantial benefits for the national economy and local community of the

project area. In addition to direct benefits, new jobs, lower electricity costs, etc. The development projects will

stimulate increased economic activity, producing important ‘macro’ benefits for the national community. The socialdevelopment program which includes the following activities:

Improvement in water supply sanitation and health in downstream villages, Rural electrification, transport, and communication facilities, Other community development and income-generating activities, and Specific training, capacity building, and skill transfer programs.

It suggests four practical steps to promote the implementation of enhancement measures in projects: (1) early

consideration of positive impacts, benefits and beneficiaries; (2) meaningful consultation and empowerment of

beneficiaries; (3) including benefit enhancement measures in project finance agreements; and (4) independent

monitoring of project benefits. The enhancement measures should be culturally appropriate, relevant to the project

objectives and activities, cost effective, and contribute to the project being a good corporate neighbour. The

employment generation is monitored in order to confirm it has the positive impact predicted in Social Impact

Assessment (SIA) reports. The enhancement should not be seen as an add-on in SIA processes but rather as a core

means to convert project risks to sustainable development opportunities. The benefits and enhancement measures of

a social development projects are given below:

Flood Control

The construction of dams may control or minimize the Indus River flood peaks. The contribution to flood control of

dams in Pakistan and particularly Indus River is incidental, because no specific arrangements in this respect were

made. Normally the floods at Indus River occur during monsoon and late floods as well. The water storage in the

reservoir during those periods can help to attenuate flood peaks. The impact of dams on attenuation of high flood

peaks during the filling period may be quite significant.

Enhancement

Municipal and Industrial Water Supply


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The municipalities and industries, have assumed considerable importance and priority, although the overall quantity

used by these sectors remains marginal as compared to water use by the irrigation sector. Less than 5% of total

water resources are used, for example, for municipal consumption (WB, 1994).1 Competition over water resources

between sectors has been limited to specific areas close to large cities and industrial complexes. However, the

demand for human and industrial water consumption is increasing with economic development and population growth(GOP, 1992).2 The main issues requiring attention include competition for groundwater use (quantity), and problems

of effluents and pollution of irrigation water (quality).

Groundwater in almost 60% of the Indus basin is marginal to brackish in quality and not fit for human consumption or

use in industry (Zuberi and Sufi 1992).3 It has indirectly augmented the supply of water for municipal and industrial

use through direct use of canal water and pumping of seepage water through shallow tubewells, but this has not

been quantified. In most of the command area of Indus Basin, supplies from canals and shallow groundwater are

used for drinking and cooking purposes. It is estimated that at present a population along the Indus Basin is

benefiting to some degree from supplements to the drinking water supply in the Rabi season.

Enhancement

National Benefits

When completed, the projects is expected to provide a significant boost to the national economy by sharply reducing

the country’s current power deficit and significantly reducing the present use of expensive and polluting oil fired

thermal power generation. The Hydropower Projects will support economic growth and job creation as well as

enhance the competitiveness of national goods both regionally and internationally. The project is also expected to

meet the anticipated near-term increase in energy use in country. The project’s principal macro benefits for country

include:

New supply of clean, reliable energy

Lower electricity costs

Reduced electricity rationing

1 World Bank. 1994. Pakistan Irrigation and Drainage: Issues and Options. Report No. 11884. Washington, D.C., USA.2 Government of Pakistan. 1992. Pakistan National Report to UNCED. Submitted to the United Nations Conference onEnvironment and Development. Environment and Urban Affairs Division, GOP, Islamabad, 164 p.3 Zuberi, F.A. & Sufi, A.B. 1992. State of Art of Groundwater Exploration, Exploitation, Management and Legislation. IWASRIWAPDA, Lahore, 26 p.


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Increase in economic investment and national income

Increase in export revenues

Possible support for rural electrification programs

Income from the sale of carbon credits

Improving Local Communities

The facility is benefiting the residents and economies of local communities near the project site. New jobs, primarily

unskilled and semi-skilled, are creating employment opportunities for local workers. In addition to improving the local

economy, we're committed to preserving the heritage and cultures of nearby villages. Meetings with the local and

provincial authorities may helpful to identify actions needed to fulfill that commitment. The development projects may

bring significant changes in the social status of local community like:

- From landlessness to land-based resettlement;- From joblessness to reemployment;- From homelessness to house reconstruction;- From marginalization to social inclusion;- From increased morbidity to improved health care;- From food insecurity to adequate nutrition;- From loss of access to restoration of community assets and services; and- From social disarticulation to rebuilding networks and communities.

Enhancement

In recruiting local workers, the project team will give preference to local residents living in the project area. This will

increase in employment will stimulate the local economy, leading to investment in new and existing businesses and

additional job opportunities for local residents. The major features of the community development plan include:

Improve local facilities, such as:

o Enhanced water supply

o Better schools

o Enhanced health care facilities Support sustainable economic development through:

o Enhanced job creation and worker training

o Improved agricultural productivity and marketing

o Promotion of other business activities

o Enhanced fishing activity


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o Support for vulnerable people

o Tourism initiatives4

Community Engagement and Acceptance

Social acceptance is essential for developments activities and it depends on community engagement, participation in

decision-making processes, and the demonstrated manifestation of positive benefit from the development. There

have been several past experiences where a lack of public acceptance of hydropower developments can lead to

significant opposition to the project. This can arise where there has been a failure to engage communities impacted

by dam building activities, and a subsequent lack of understanding and recognition of issues that communities face.

Governments, development proponents, stakeholders and communities can all experience unnecessary, significant

and ongoing negative consequences as a result of not gaining public acceptance for the project. More sustainable

outcomes can be achieved when community rights are recognised and decision-making processes include effective

participation by impacted communities.

Enhancement

Suitable processes need to be established and accepted to achieve the on-going consultation and participation of all

stakeholders and impacted communities. Affected communities must view the engagement process as being open,

fair and inclusive. They need to trust the integrity of government and development participants. The opportunity for

communities to make an informed contribution on issues such as the identification, planning and distribution of

benefits and potential resettlement options, is required. Vulnerable or minority groups, and women in particular,

should have their voices heard by adequate representation. Acceptance of change takes time, and it is important for

those communities that are affected to be given sufficient lead time to consider the consequences of proposals that

have been negotiated. Further, it is important that the commitments that have been made to communities are

followed through, ensuring that agreed milestones and performance targets are met.

Multiple Use Benefits

Hydropower schemes can deliver multiple use benefits over and above electricity generation such as irrigation, flood

mitigation, water supply and recreation; these benefits need to be realistically assessed and planned in a holistic

fashion. Hydropower projects can provide for many other societal needs as well as the generation of electricity and

needs and opportunities should be identified as part of an initial assessment. The challenges are to maximise the

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delivery of additional benefits, and undertake assessment, planning and implementation of multi-purpose schemes in

a holistic and integrated fashion.

Enhancement

Hydropower projects generally provide a variety of value added uses and benefits, particularly those that involve

reservoir storage. These multiple use benefits differentiate hydro generation from other forms of power generation,

and are amongst the criteria to be considered when evaluating the social, economic and environmental sustainability

of an electricity generation project. The affected communities can benefit from the availability of drinking water supply

and sanitation, water for business and industry, water for sustainable food production (both in-reservoir and via

irrigation), flood mitigation and recreation and tourist opportunities. These benefits generate economic activity over

and above that of electricity generation, but can also incur some costs, and these need to be taken into account in

project planning as well as in on-going management.

Further added benefits are ancillary services such as spinning reserve, voltage support and black start capability.

Perhaps one of the greatest benefits of hydropower projects is the avoidance of greenhouse emissions and

particulate pollution associated with some thermal energy options. These externalities may be difficult to price but

deserve recognition in the wider economic context of project assessment.

Public Health

Hydropower projects can provide significant new public health benefits to previously impoverished areas, but at the

same time it is essential that they adequately assess, plan for and mitigate against any potential negative humanhealth impacts. It is essential that public health risks are adequately assessed and addressed, while at the same time

opportunities to improve public health benefits are considered.

Some vector borne diseases can be associated with reservoir development, for example malaria and

schistosomiasis, and schemes constructed in malaria prone areas have the potential to increase transmission of this

disease. People subject to resettlement can be more at risk from health problems where stresses are created by the

new project development; i.e. a poorly managed project could result in lack of jobs or income, poor sanitation, or

contaminated water supplies. Loss or contamination of traditional food sources and access to traditional fisheries

would exacubate project-induced health issues. Anaerobic decay processes in large reservoirs has in some cases

increased levels of contaminants such as mercury in fish through bio-accumulation. An itinerant construction

workforce may add to health problems in construction camps and resettlement areas, if it results in the spread of HIV,

Aids or other diseases such as malaria. TB and measles may compound these issues.

Enhancement


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Well planned and executed hydropower projects can provide significant new public health benefits to previously

poorly developed areas. This objective can best be achieved by not just maintaining local health conditions pre-dam,

but by improving public health conditions and facilities for communities impacted by developments overall. The

upgrading of electricity services to a region, and associated economic development including infrastructure, transport

and other services, can provide a major opportunity to improve existing regional public health care facilities.

It is sound management practice to incorporate health impact assessment as part of the wider environmental and

social impact assessment process for a hydropower development. Assessment of the requirements for provision of

any health services and assignment of responsibility should be undertaken in conjunction with relevant health

authorities. Funding health services requires long-term commitment with the role of the project proponent,

government agencies and local public health officials being clearly defined to ensure that necessary resources are

provided on an agreed and on- going basis.

A public health plan would include the development of preventative measures such as disease prevention education

and awareness campaigns, monitoring of vectors and disease outbreaks, vector control, and clinical treatment of

disease cases, as needed. Practical measures such as control of floating aquatic weeds near populated areas could

reduce mosquito-borne disease risks. Mechanical or chemical treatment of shallow reservoir areas, to reduce

proliferation of insects that carry waterborne diseases, also offer a means of risk reduction.

Population Displacement

Population displacement is an issue of high sensitivity with some new hydropower developments, and it needs to be

a guiding consideration in the planning, sitting, assessment, design and management of any scheme. The

displacement of communities has in notable cases been a factor causing an outcry against hydropower projects.

Dam construction unavoidably results in areas of land being flooded, with other areas being set aside for

infrastructure development and catchment conservation areas. Population displacement has occurred on a range of

scales from several families to tens of thousands of people.

In some cases the land has been the home of, and provided the spiritual, social and economic resource base for

local communities. Of particular concern has been the involuntary displacement and resettlement of minority groups

who have a specific attachment to land because of its cultural significance. Land provides for material needs such astimber for housing, cooking and food supplies, as well as traditional medicinal remedies. Loss of land can be

associated with a loss of cultural identity and spiritual belonging.

In cases those affected may be vulnerable to social deprivation through being ill- equipped to deal with an unfamiliar

way of living, and having few transferable and usable skills or support networks. Women and children in particular


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may be vulnerable if they have no means of support. Resettlement of people is consequently a sensitive issue, and

needs to be planned and managed from project outset through a process of engagement and economic support.

Enhancement

The ideal hydropower development is one where there is no human displacement, or where there is no opposition

from affected populations to resettlement. If population displacement is unavoidable, resettlement progresses most

smoothly when there are adequate development policies, institutional and regulatory frameworks in place. These

need to be supported by adequate levels of project financing with clearly defined roles for government and the

developer. Comprehensive resettlement and rehabilitation plans need to be developed and implemented in

consultation with affected populations. Opportunities to modify scheme design to minimise population displacement

need to be carefully examined. The knowledge of local communities and stakeholders should inform planning

processes and development strategies.

All stakeholders have the right to be informed about the project and its ramifications on them at as early a stage as

possible. Negotiated outcomes with people’s representatives should be achieved wherever possible, and if

necessary, a system of arbitration put in place to resolve differences. Communities are best moved in their entirety

with protection provided for indigenous peoples, women and children. Community development plans require

implementation and monitoring through on-going consultation and liaison with community groups. Communities or

individuals who are disadvantaged by a project require adequate compensation, and ideally should see an

improvement in their quality of life. Access to electricity, water and sanitation, and public health services, in

conjunction with education opportunities are important aspects.

Vulnerable Segments

Maintaining cultural and spiritual identity, and social and economic integrity, requires specific measures to be

implemented throughout the project life cycle to ensure that indigenous communities are not socially and

economically marginalised and disadvantaged. Implications of hydropower projects on vulnerable social groups are a

highly sensitive issue. The hydropower development may intrude on indigenous land, and may be only one of a

number of multiple pressures on vulnerable communities that can have social and cultural consequences. Indigenous

peoples and ethnic minorities can be disadvantaged in the development process, and their social and cultural identityeroded or even lost. A significant transformation of the physical landscape can destroy ancestral sites and conflict

with basic belief and value systems. The community may be directly affected by hydropower developments where

relocation and resettlement is required. They can also be indirectly affected by increasing encroachment of outside

influences on their traditional lands, the introduction of disease and the loss of self-determination. This can lead to

loss or impacts on local subsistence resources, as well as community breakdown.


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Enhancement

Developers have an obligation to respect the right of indigenous communities. When considering alternative

hydropower options, priority should be placed on alternatives that maximise opportunities for, and do not pose

significant unsolvable threats to, vulnerable social groups. Although it is difficult to mitigate or fully compensateimpacts, they may be minimised through early involvement of affected communities in decision making processes.

Indigenous people and minorities will need to be formally represented to ensure understanding and management of

issues of cultural significance. A program of social impact assessment should form part of an overall environmental

and social impact assessment process that leads to the development of socially acceptable enhancement programs

with net benefit.

Sufficient lead time and resources for minority groups to adapt to changing conditions, as well as alternative means

to support traditional ways-of-life where required, can facilitate transition to unfamiliar environments. Compensation

funds and the development of appropriate health, education and social services should all be considered in the

development of appropriate mitigation strategies. Long-term financial support is best directed at measures that help

define and maintain local cultural identity.

Recreation and Tourism

The recreation and tourism or ecotourism is a benefit of the hydropower development. There will exploration of the

reservoir and how it might contribute to the rather restricted tourism industry in the country. Cultural heritage impact

assessments provide a means for new hydro projects to avoid alterations to sites of exceptional national and

international heritage value. In the absence of an adequate assessment, new hydropower schemes may end up

submerging heritage sites and areas of cultural value. The construction of infrastructure, roads and power lines can

also disturb or damage items with cultural significance. This may in cases result in the loss of, or damage to, sites

with religious or ceremonial meaning for people. Without sufficient involvement of relevant local and cultural groups,

the values and risks for heritage issues may not be realised and adequately addressed.

Enhancement

Whereas several types of facilities will most attractive to tourism in the area, especially water sports, government

policy may encourage such activities around the reservoir. Some minor navigation also takes place along the upper

reservoir and it has helped long travel distances by footfor the local population. WAPDA’s own guesthouse facilities

at the dam provide excellent accommodation to the incoming visitors. The dams’boatmen may provide services

around the reservoir and the some shops and small hotels in the nearby townships. The visitors locals and foreigners

can visit the dam and school groups, study tours, government sponsored visits of various dignitaries and so forth.


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They come mainly to see the scenic views around the reservoir, and to enjoy water sports upstream, away from the

main structure. Fishing may permit with a license.

The adequate care and preservation of identified sensitive sites/artifacts and heritage site can make them attractive

for the visitors and sensitive and appropriate management of cultural heritage can assist in increasing a community’sacceptance of, and reducing opposition to, the construction of hydropower schemes as well. It can also facilitate

social and cultural re-establishment and rehabilitation once the scheme is in operation. The significance and

appropriate steps taken to mitigate risk of damage or loss for the recovery of outstanding artifacts and relocation of

them to appropriate protected areas as agreed with the communities involved and the authorities.

Local Capacity Building

Capacity building programs can enhance the capabilities and opportunities for local institutions and communities

affected by hydro developments. Hydropower developments should provide opportunities for local capacitybuilding. This is particularly the case where communities have been displaced or their sources of income have been

affected. Creating and maintaining educational and economic opportunities that empower communities to re-

establish themselves under changed conditions is a central factor in economic sustainability.

Enhancement

The economic and social sustainability of hydropower developments is the need to support capacity building within

local communities and institutions through the demonstrable provision and support of increased capabilities and

opportunities. The role that governments and project developers play in this process is integral to communityacceptance of the project, the long term sustainability of the scheme and the effective distribution of benefits. The

development and support of local capabilities and opportunities at various levels may involve:

providing employment opportunities;

establishing economic opportunities;

the investment of funds in long term development and training programs;

the establishment of training and community infrastructure and facilities (schools, crèches, market places, touristfacilities);

the development of skills for employment;

providing access to commercial electricity supply, water and sanitation.

Building and maintaining a hydro scheme can be heavily reliant on the use of local resources, not just materials such

as rock fill but also through the employment of local labour and contracting of local businesses. Training and


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employing local people brings them into the cash economy and provides them with skills. The success of such a

process is best initiated early in the community consultation process through discussion and involvement of local

communities affected by development. Participants in capacity building processes may need to be provided with

incentives to participate, and may need encouragement through consensus building or conflict management

techniques.

social benefits of hydropower projects

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