Anna Brismar - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Anna Brismar

While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policymakers are faced with a seemingly i... more While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policymakers are faced with a seemingly insurmountable task of satisfying escalating demands for fresh water, electricity, agricultural products, etc. Not only is the irrigated land area presently shrinking, as previously cultivated land is converted to various non-agricultural purposes, but additionally, advancing pollution from expanding mining industries, urban centers, and upstream input-intensive farmlands, are causing a reduction in the usability of the Yellow River water. Unfavorable climatic, topographic, and geomorphic preconditions further constrain food production potentials. The exceptionally high silt load and sedimentation rate in the Yellow River constitute another major challenge for engineers. Dam construction and maintenance work are aggravated by rapid sedimentation in reservoirs, undermining potentials for water supply storage and electricity production. Likewise, flood prevention measures in the Lower Reach...

Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and cont... more Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and continue to be launched, primarily in developing countries. However, large dam projects also cause exten ...

Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and cont... more Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and continue to be launched, primarily in developing countries. However, large dam projects also cause extensive environmental impacts in the river system, which may reduce the river system's capacity to provide goods, services, and other values apart from those generated by the project. The Environmental Impact Statement (ElS) has become a key instrument for enabling prevention, minimization, and mitigation of significant adverse environmental effects of major projects in early planning. The potential of EISs to support compromise building between conflicting interests is also increasingly recognized. In reality, the great potentials of the ElS are rarely fully utilized, which motivate further improvements.This thesis has three main objectives, Le. (i) to examine the motives behind large dam projects, their impact on project planning, and some constraints for full project realization, (ii) to identify shortcomings in EISs and other project-related reports regarding the extent to and manner in which potential environmental effects of large dam projects are attended to, and (iii) to suggest measures for how to improve the capacity of EISs to support impact minimization and compromise building in project plarming and decision-making.Based on a case study on the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) in southeast Turkey, it was found that the objectives and planning of large dam projects can change significantly over time, in response to changes in the underlying ambitions and motives for development. While changes to the design may increase the dam's technical capacity to store water and generate hydropower, the actual potential to utilize its installed capacities during recurrent droughts may be limited. An increased scale and number ofdam project objectives may also lead to increased competition over the river water. Full realization of dam project objectives may be hampered by the climate and by growing water demands of competing uses. Moreover, an analysis of GAP-related reports revealed imbalances in the total degree of attention given to individual environmental problems, different categories of environmental problems, and to environmental problems of dam projects and irrigation schemes, respectively, as weIl as shifts in the focus of attention over time from early plarming to implementation. The fmdings suggest that project-related reports tend to focus on problematic environmental conditions that motivate project implementation, and on potential environmental effects that may undermine project productivity, viability, or longevity, particularly in planning and early implementation. In contrast, those potential environmental effects with no apparent bearing on the financial or operational success of the project tend to be largely neglected unless strong incentives are created.The analysis ofEISs of large dam projects revealed shortcomings in the attention given to root causes and impact pathways involved in the generation of higher-order environmental effects and cumulative impacts. Important imbalances were also found in the degree of attention given to different types of environmental effects. In order to improve the capacity of EISs to explain how higher-order effects and cumulative impacts may arise, network analysis and cause-effect diagrams should be increasingly adopted. This thesis also proposes a conceptual framework to facilitate a comparison of desired and undesired effects, based on the view of a river system as a provider of goods and services, which enables the translation of ecological effects into their societal and economic implications.

While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policy makers are faced with a seemingly ... more While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policy makers are faced with a seemingly insurmountable task of satisfying demands for fresh water, electricity, agricultural products, etc. Not only is the irrigated land area presently shrinking, as previously cultivated is converted to various non-agricultural purposes, but additionally, advancing pollution from expanding mining industries, urban centers, and upstream input-intensive farmlands, are causing a reduction in the usability of the Yellow River water. Unfavorable climatic, topographic, and geomorphic preconditions further constrain food production potentials. The exceptionally high silt load and sedimentation rate in the Yellow River constitute another major challenge for engineers. Dam construction and maintenance work are aggravated by rapid sedimentation in reservoirs, undermining potentials for water supply storage and electricity production. Likewise, flood prevention measures in the Lower Reaches are counteracted by sediment build-up in the canal. In the entire basin, freshwater constitutes an advancing challenge, with regard to its usability, storage, allocation, and absolute seasonal availability. Based on a review of potential river ecological impacts of irrigation and multi-purpose dams, this report concludes that advancing intensification of agricultural practices and continuous construction of large dams may significantly alter riverine ecosystems with adverse implications for human livelihoods. The author argues that any larger intervention in the riverine landscape should by necessity be preceded by a comprehensive assessment of the river's various functions and values for its different user groups. Such an assessment should consider not only the physical, but also the water quality and biological aspects and their interrelations. Just as many scientists tend to focus only on a few research parameters, managerial strategies often tend to target only one or a few objectives at a time. Balancing the different interests at hand, based on a comprehensive but understandable environmental impact assessment, is identified as the key to successful integrated river basin management.

Natural Resources Forum, 2002

... Published by Blackwell Publishers, 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK and 350 Main Street, M... more ... Published by Blackwell Publishers, 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA. ... to 800,000 ha, by revising and com-plementing the Lower Firat irrigation scheme with two new irrigation schemes, namely the Adiyaman-Katha and Baziki ...

Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 2004

... diversion (not pumped storage or run-of-river dams), and intended exclusively or in part forh... more ... diversion (not pumped storage or run-of-river dams), and intended exclusively or in part forhydropower generation; and (4 ... they have nonetheless attempted to assess the accumulated impacts of each dam project on selected impact receptors, eg on water quality, fish species ...

Environmental Management, 2002

In developing countries, large dam projects continue to be launched, primarily to secure a time-s... more In developing countries, large dam projects continue to be launched, primarily to secure a time-stable freshwater supply and to generate hydropower. Meanwhile, calls for environmentally sustainable development put pressure on the dam-building industry to integrate ecological concerns in project planning and decision-making. Such integration requires environmental impact statements (EISs) that can communicate the societal implications of the ecological effects in terms that are understandable and useful to planners and decision-makers.

While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policymakers are faced with a seemingly i... more While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policymakers are faced with a seemingly insurmountable task of satisfying escalating demands for fresh water, electricity, agricultural products, etc. Not only is the irrigated land area presently shrinking, as previously cultivated land is converted to various non-agricultural purposes, but additionally, advancing pollution from expanding mining industries, urban centers, and upstream input-intensive farmlands, are causing a reduction in the usability of the Yellow River water. Unfavorable climatic, topographic, and geomorphic preconditions further constrain food production potentials. The exceptionally high silt load and sedimentation rate in the Yellow River constitute another major challenge for engineers. Dam construction and maintenance work are aggravated by rapid sedimentation in reservoirs, undermining potentials for water supply storage and electricity production. Likewise, flood prevention measures in the Lower Reach...

Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and cont... more Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and continue to be launched, primarily in developing countries. However, large dam projects also cause exten ...

Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and cont... more Large dam projects have played a key role in supporting societal development in the past and continue to be launched, primarily in developing countries. However, large dam projects also cause extensive environmental impacts in the river system, which may reduce the river system's capacity to provide goods, services, and other values apart from those generated by the project. The Environmental Impact Statement (ElS) has become a key instrument for enabling prevention, minimization, and mitigation of significant adverse environmental effects of major projects in early planning. The potential of EISs to support compromise building between conflicting interests is also increasingly recognized. In reality, the great potentials of the ElS are rarely fully utilized, which motivate further improvements.This thesis has three main objectives, Le. (i) to examine the motives behind large dam projects, their impact on project planning, and some constraints for full project realization, (ii) to identify shortcomings in EISs and other project-related reports regarding the extent to and manner in which potential environmental effects of large dam projects are attended to, and (iii) to suggest measures for how to improve the capacity of EISs to support impact minimization and compromise building in project plarming and decision-making.Based on a case study on the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP) in southeast Turkey, it was found that the objectives and planning of large dam projects can change significantly over time, in response to changes in the underlying ambitions and motives for development. While changes to the design may increase the dam's technical capacity to store water and generate hydropower, the actual potential to utilize its installed capacities during recurrent droughts may be limited. An increased scale and number ofdam project objectives may also lead to increased competition over the river water. Full realization of dam project objectives may be hampered by the climate and by growing water demands of competing uses. Moreover, an analysis of GAP-related reports revealed imbalances in the total degree of attention given to individual environmental problems, different categories of environmental problems, and to environmental problems of dam projects and irrigation schemes, respectively, as weIl as shifts in the focus of attention over time from early plarming to implementation. The fmdings suggest that project-related reports tend to focus on problematic environmental conditions that motivate project implementation, and on potential environmental effects that may undermine project productivity, viability, or longevity, particularly in planning and early implementation. In contrast, those potential environmental effects with no apparent bearing on the financial or operational success of the project tend to be largely neglected unless strong incentives are created.The analysis ofEISs of large dam projects revealed shortcomings in the attention given to root causes and impact pathways involved in the generation of higher-order environmental effects and cumulative impacts. Important imbalances were also found in the degree of attention given to different types of environmental effects. In order to improve the capacity of EISs to explain how higher-order effects and cumulative impacts may arise, network analysis and cause-effect diagrams should be increasingly adopted. This thesis also proposes a conceptual framework to facilitate a comparison of desired and undesired effects, based on the view of a river system as a provider of goods and services, which enables the translation of ecological effects into their societal and economic implications.

While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policy makers are faced with a seemingly ... more While the Chinese population continues to grow, Chinese policy makers are faced with a seemingly insurmountable task of satisfying demands for fresh water, electricity, agricultural products, etc. Not only is the irrigated land area presently shrinking, as previously cultivated is converted to various non-agricultural purposes, but additionally, advancing pollution from expanding mining industries, urban centers, and upstream input-intensive farmlands, are causing a reduction in the usability of the Yellow River water. Unfavorable climatic, topographic, and geomorphic preconditions further constrain food production potentials. The exceptionally high silt load and sedimentation rate in the Yellow River constitute another major challenge for engineers. Dam construction and maintenance work are aggravated by rapid sedimentation in reservoirs, undermining potentials for water supply storage and electricity production. Likewise, flood prevention measures in the Lower Reaches are counteracted by sediment build-up in the canal. In the entire basin, freshwater constitutes an advancing challenge, with regard to its usability, storage, allocation, and absolute seasonal availability. Based on a review of potential river ecological impacts of irrigation and multi-purpose dams, this report concludes that advancing intensification of agricultural practices and continuous construction of large dams may significantly alter riverine ecosystems with adverse implications for human livelihoods. The author argues that any larger intervention in the riverine landscape should by necessity be preceded by a comprehensive assessment of the river's various functions and values for its different user groups. Such an assessment should consider not only the physical, but also the water quality and biological aspects and their interrelations. Just as many scientists tend to focus only on a few research parameters, managerial strategies often tend to target only one or a few objectives at a time. Balancing the different interests at hand, based on a comprehensive but understandable environmental impact assessment, is identified as the key to successful integrated river basin management.

Natural Resources Forum, 2002

... Published by Blackwell Publishers, 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK and 350 Main Street, M... more ... Published by Blackwell Publishers, 108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA. ... to 800,000 ha, by revising and com-plementing the Lower Firat irrigation scheme with two new irrigation schemes, namely the Adiyaman-Katha and Baziki ...

Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 2004

... diversion (not pumped storage or run-of-river dams), and intended exclusively or in part forh... more ... diversion (not pumped storage or run-of-river dams), and intended exclusively or in part forhydropower generation; and (4 ... they have nonetheless attempted to assess the accumulated impacts of each dam project on selected impact receptors, eg on water quality, fish species ...

Environmental Management, 2002

In developing countries, large dam projects continue to be launched, primarily to secure a time-s... more In developing countries, large dam projects continue to be launched, primarily to secure a time-stable freshwater supply and to generate hydropower. Meanwhile, calls for environmentally sustainable development put pressure on the dam-building industry to integrate ecological concerns in project planning and decision-making. Such integration requires environmental impact statements (EISs) that can communicate the societal implications of the ecological effects in terms that are understandable and useful to planners and decision-makers.