Hydrodams again: A closer look at expensive gharials, lost dolphins, dissected fish migration, and destructive energy for non-sustainable mining and societies abroad fueling a non-democratic governance for the designed ‘homo electricus’

Abstract

This chapter looks in closer detail at hydrodam projects in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region and their legacy; primarily so-called ‘green energy’ hydrodam developments are done in pristine and great landscapes, and sometimes in relation with protected areas such as found in Chitwan, Nepal and several ones in Tibet. Six species and topics are discussed here specifically and a cumulative impact view is promoted. It is shown that endangered species fare poorly, such as the gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) and the river dolphin (Platanista gangetica); fish migration is poorly studied but also affected resulting in food security issues and in the wholesale destruction of formerly sustainable lifestyles for centuries. Electricty production, e.g. for industrial projects, has increased and leaves us with a massive footprint and problem, globally. It equals ‘social engineering’ and created the ‘homo electricus’. We found that hydrodams are not benign for impacts, and not sustainable on most metrics. Here the wider strategic implications are discussed towards a more sustainable lifestyle in the watersheds of the HKH region and worldwide where as hydrodams are still globally promoted -naively and wrongly- as so-called successful ‘green energy’ concepts.