Large dams can bring long-term benefits for displaced communities, says study

Major dams have long been criticised by NGOs, however they need not spell disaster for the communities they displace, according to research published today that spells out the need for benefits to be shared over decades and not just a few years.

The findings from the International Institute for Environment and Development coincide with a large-scale consultation about how future dams in West Africa can share benefits with local people, including river users and communities who have been displaced.

The report acknowledges that many dam programmes that have resettled and compensated people have been problematic especially after a few years, when compensation measures linked to the construction of the dam come to an end. But it points to examples where river basin authorities have successfully shared profits from hydropower or irrigation schemes with local people.

The challenge, it says, is to ensure that displaced people benefit through the lifetime of the dam – as much as 50 to 80 years – and not just for the first 5 to 10 years when the project’s main financial backers are still engaged.

"Large dams have a bad-name because too many have brought serious environmental and social impacts," says the report’s author Jamie Skinner. "But large dams are here to stay and more are being planned. Countries are choosing them as an adaptation to food insecurity, rising energy prices and climate change so it is essential that they build 'good dams', where the benefits are widely shared and the harmful impacts are minimised."

The report says mechanisms that engage and support affected communities will also benefit governments, investors and dam operators by promoting good community relations, public support for infrastructure development and improved livelihoods.

"The main beneficiaries of dams tend to be urban citizens and industries that gain from the improved infrastructure over decades," says Skinner. "Affected communities tend to be resettled elsewhere and compensated. Future dam projects urgently need to make resettled people tangibly better off as a result of the project. The good news is that many mechanisms for sharing benefits already exist and can be readily implemented if there is sufficient political will."

As global temperatures rise, sustainable water management will become increasingly critical due to increasing frequency of droughts and floods.

"Countries will need dams to manage these unpredictable flows, and to provide irrigation and hydro-electric power to address food and fuel insecurity," says Skinner. "But not at the expense of those displaced."

Download the full report