Published on India Environment Portal | News, reports, documents, blogs, data, analysis on environment & development | India, South Asia (http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in)

Home > Featured Articles > Dependence of hydropower energy generation on forests in the Amazon Basin at local and regional scales > Dependence of hydropower energy generation on forests in the Amazon Basin at local and regional scales

Dependence of hydropower energy generation on forests in the Amazon Basin at local and regional scales [1]

Tropical rainforest regions have large hydropower generation potential that figures prominently in many nations’ energy growth strategies. Feasibility studies of hydropower plants typically ignore the effect of future deforestation or assume that deforestation will have a positive effect on river discharge and energy generation resulting from declines in evapotranspiration (ET) associated with forest conversion. Forest loss can also reduce river discharge, however, by inhibiting rainfall. We used land use, hydrological, and climate models to examine the local “direct” effects (through changes in ET within the watershed) and the potential regional “indirect” effects (through changes in rainfall) of deforestation on river discharge and energy generation potential for the Belo Monte energy complex, one of the world’s largest hydropower plants that is currently under construction on the Xingu River in the eastern Amazon.

Publication Date: 
13/05/2013
Claudia M. Sticklera [2], Michael T. Coeb [3], Marcos H. Costa & et al [4]
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences [5]
1-6
Tags:
Hydroelectricity [6], Amazon [7], Tropical Forests [8], Deforestation [9], Hydrology [10], Climate Change [11], Land Use [12], Rivers [13], Rainfall Pattern [14], Dams [15]

Technology Partners: MimirTech

Source URL: http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/feature-article/dependence-hydropower-energy-generation-forests-amazon-basin-local-and-regional

Links:
[1] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/feature-article/dependence-hydropower-energy-generation-forests-amazon-basin-local-and-regional
[2] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/claudia-m-sticklera
[3] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/michael-t-coeb
[4] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/author/marcos-h-costa-et-al
[5] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/journal/proceedings-national-academy-sciences
[6] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/hydroelectricity
[7] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/amazon
[8] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/tropical-forests
[9] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/deforestation
[10] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/hydrology
[11] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/climate-change
[12] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/land-use
[13] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/rivers
[14] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/rainfall-pattern
[15] http://admin.indiaenvironmentportal.org.in/category/thesaurus/dams