Hydropower

As a source of renewable and clean energy, hydropower is attracting more and more attention within the Mekong River basin due to increasing power demand, variable prices in international energy markets, and concerns over greenhouse gas reduction.⁴⁵⁷ However, the topic of hydropower development in the Mekong River Basin is very controversial. On the one hand, the large hydropower projects can bring a series of benefits to the riparian governments, such as reducing poverty, lowering national debts, fostering economic prosperity, and improving energy security.⁴⁵⁸ On the other hand, however, the development of hydropower also has several cumulative impacts on the environment, fisheries, and also people’s livelihood in the Mekong River basin.⁴⁵⁹

The MRC goes to great lengths to avoid negative impacts across the region and to maintain the sustainability of hydropower development. These efforts are focused not only on infrastructure construction, which contributes to energy service, but also on the comprehensive effectiveness of projects based on a basin-wide perspective.⁴⁶⁰ It works with Member Countries to formulate hydropower strategies and policies,

457 MRC, ‘Sustainable Hydropower’ (Official Website of the MRC)

<http://www.mrcmekong.org/topics/sustainable-hydropower/> accessed 02 October 2016.

458 Ibid.

459 Claudia Kuenzer, Ian Campbell, Marthe Roch, Patrick Leinenkugel, Vo Quoc Tuan, Stefan Dech

‘Understanding the Impact of Hydropower Developments in the Context of Upstream–Downstream Relations in the Mekong river basin’ (2013) 8/4 Sustainability Science 565, 565.

460 MRC, ‘Sustainable Hydropower’ (Official Website of the MRC)

<http://www.mrcmekong.org/topics/sustainable-hydropower/> accessed 02 October 2016.

coordination of impact assessments, and develop reasonable measures for impact mitigation.⁴⁶¹ The potential of hydropower in the Mekong River Basin is very high and has not been developed very well. So it creates a challenge for Mekong Countries to design effective strategies and collaborative approaches to sustainably develop hydropower. Therefore, the MRC has formulated the Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower (ISH), which focuses on fostering regional cooperation to promote sustainable management of increased hydropower projects from a basin-wide management perspective. ⁴⁶² This Initiative includes “drawing effectively on international experiences, developing regional technical knowledge, and sharing best practices relevant to all stages of planning”.⁴⁶³ The Initiative is also integrated with activities of other MRC’s Programmes, such as the Basin Development Plan Programme, Environment Programme, Fisheries Programme, Navigation Programme, and so forth.⁴⁶⁴ The following section introduces further details about the ISH project.

3.1.8.1.1. Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower

Due to recent demands on hydropower development and the hydropower-related impacts on different aspects of the Mekong River basin, the Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower was established by the MRC in 2008, aiming to advance regional cooperative efforts working towards sustainable management of increased hydropower projects from a basin-wide perspective.⁴⁶⁵ Based on this Initiative, the MRC connects the decisions on hydropower management of all the member countries with the aim to develop the hydropower with basin-wide integrated water resources management. In addition, the MRC supports regional consultation on mainstream hydropower development proposals through the “Procedures for Notification, Prior Consultation and Agreement (PNPCA)” set down according to the 1995 Mekong

461 Ibid.

462 MRC, ‘Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower’ (Official Website of the MRC)

<http://www.mrcmekong.org/about-mrc/programmes/initiative-on-sustainable-hydropower/> accessed 02 October 2016.

463 Ibid.

464 Ibid.

465 MRC, ‘Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower’ (Official Website of the MRC)

<http://www.mrcmekong.org/about-mrc/programmes/initiative-on-sustainable-hydropower/> accessed 02 October 2016.

Agreement, which can help Member Countries better understand the risks and potential for success of these proposals.⁴⁶⁶

This Initiative provides support to regional planning by establishing knowledge platforms and networks that can help Member Countries exchange information, share experiences and cooperate on sustainable hydropower tolls and practices.⁴⁶⁷ It aims to raise awareness of sustainability in the process of hydropower decision-making. The initiative also developed the Preliminary Design Guidance for Proposed LMRB Hydropower Schemes, which furthers the exchange of best practices effectively based on regional and international experiences by designing mainstream Mekong hydropower schemes. Additionally, the Initiative also fosters strategic transboundary assessments that can supply member countries with technical advice for potential regional impacts on mainstream hydropower projects.⁴⁶⁸

Furthermore, this Initiative is also a crosscutting initiative aimed at achieving the benefits of hydropower, long-term sustainability, and mutually beneficial development from a basin-wide perspective. Its crosscutting character is reflected in several measures connecting the aspect of hydropower planning and management with other different aspects, such as environmental and socio-economic baseline information, fishery productivity, cumulative impacts of hydropower, benefit sharing and innovative finance approaches for improving sustainable outcomes to achieve stakeholder expectations etc.⁴⁶⁹

There are numbers of studies that have analyzed the social, environmental, and economic impacts from construction and operation of large dams and demonstrated the complexity of such issues. Among these academic works, there are hardly any that are both comprehensive and specifically address the gender-specific dimension of hydropower development. Interestingly, women have proven to be one of the most vulnerable groups during hydropower development. However, research on the gender-related risks is still insufficient.⁴⁷⁰ Supported by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, the ISH held a regional scoping

466 Ibid.

467 Ibid.

468 Ibid.

469 Ibid.

470 Ibid.

workshop on Gender and Sustainable Hydropower from 20-21 June 2013 in Bangkok, Thailand. This workshop provided a platform for awareness raising and exchanging ideas. However, the MRC and its stakeholders have yet to engage in any concrete activities for improving gender-sensitive hydropower.⁴⁷¹

This initiative is also closely deeply in the MRC’s Fisheries Programme, due to the close relationship between the fish biodiversity of the hydropower development.⁴⁷² Nowadays, the hydropower practitioner and regional line agencies in the Fish and Hydropower Primer are well aware of the importance of fisheries. Therefore, the ISH has supported a comprehensive review of “available fish passage technology and design parameters”. The initiative has also furthered research and practice on turbine design, which should reduce fish death when fish pass downstream through turbines.⁴⁷³

3.1.8.2. Summary

Hydropower development plays a very complex role in the Mekong River basin, because it has both negative and positive effects on the Mekong Region. Following the 1995 Mekong Agreement, MRC has engaged in a series of efforts related to this topic to improve the hydropower development in a sustainable way from a basin-wide perspective based on close cooperation between the member countries. The MRC also established the Initiative of Sustainable Hydropower, which connects Member Countries’ decisions on hydropower development with the Integrated Water resources Management. This initiative provides a platform for Member countries to exchange information and experiences, and also supports regional consultation on mainstream hydropower development proposals and transboundary environmental assessment.

Under this initiative, which is treated as a crosscutting initiative, hydropower development has also been connected with other issues, such as gender, fisheries and so forth.

471 Ibid.

472 Guy Ziva, Eric Baran, So Nam, Ignacio Rodríguez-Iturbed and Simon A. Levina, ‘Trading-off Fish Biodiversity, Food Security, and Hydropower in the Mekong River Basin’ (2012) 109 Proceedings of the National Academy of Science of the United State of America 5609, 5610-5611.

473 MRC, ‘Initiative on Sustainable Hydropower’ (Official Website of the MRC)

<http://www.mrcmekong.org/about-mrc/programmes/initiative-on-sustainable-hydropower/> accessed 02 October 2016.

3.1.9. Water Quality