Wednesday, July 20, 2011

New tool to assess dams

Two articles. (Straight to the source--PDF on the project: http://tinyurl.com/4y2dv6w)

http://www.kval.com/news/tech/125824458.html

Countries are building dams at an amazing pace right now'
By Angela Yeager OSU News & Communications Published: Jul 20, 2011 at
5:00 AM PDT
CORVALLIS, Ore. � A new tool to help policy makers better assess the
costs and benefits of building dams � the first tool of its kind �
could change the way nations decide to develop hydro-electric power.

The Integrative Dam Assessment Modeling tool, or IDAM, uses an
interdisciplinary approach to simultaneously evaluate the distribution
of biophysical, socio-economic and geopolitical impacts of dams,
according to one of the model�s creators, Bryan Tilt, an associate
professor of anthropology at Oregon State University.

The model was designed as a decision-support tool that policy makers
can use to understand holistically the impacts, costs and benefits of
building a dam in any area.

On July 27, researchers at Oregon State University who developed the
model will present the tool in Washington, D.C., to a group of policy-
makers, government agencies and environmental organizations from the
United States, China and Southeast Asia.

The dam assessment tool measures the costs associated with a proposed
dam development project and also measures the possible benefits. Each
of the diagrams in the tool consists of 27 individual indicators of
the effects of dam construction, divided into socioeconomic,
geopolitical and biophysical themes.

For instance, factors such as habitat restoration costs can be
weighed, along with loss of income to local people and access to clean
drinking water.

�When you put up a dam, it affects whole ecosystems and whole
communities,� Tilt said. �No other measurement tool can allow for so
many variables, and allow the user to weigh what factors they view as
most important.�

Tilt said the impetus for this dam modeling project happened in 2000,
when the World Commission on Dams called for more equitable and
sustainable decision-making with respect to large dams.

In 2007, the National Science Foundation funded the research by OSU
and its collaborators to develop and test this dam assessment tool.

Numerous studies modeling real dams in China helped the researchers
refine and perfect the tool, which they believe will help policy-
makers make more informed decisions about building dams.

�The fact is that China and African, Southeast Asian and Latin
American countries are building dams at an amazing pace right now,�
Tilt said. �There is no denying that they are going to continue to
build them for the near future. So how can we help them to do it
better, more sustainably, and mitigate any damage as much as possible?�

Desiree Tullos, an associate professor in the Department of Biological
& Ecological Engineering at OSU and the project�s lead researcher,
along with Aaron Wolf, professor of geosciences at OSU, will be at the
meeting in Washington, D.C., along with Tilt.

----

http://oregonstate.edu/ua/ncs/archives/2009/jun/scientists-develop-groundbreaking-new-model-impacts-dams

Scientists develop groundbreaking new model for impacts of dams

6-24-09

CORVALLIS, Ore. � Scientists have developed a new system to help
policy makers better assess the costs and benefits of building dams �
the first system of its kind to use an interdisciplinary approach to
simultaneously evaluate the distribution of biophysical, socio-
economic and geopolitical impacts of dams, according to one of the
study�s co-authors.

�We as scientists tend to look at things through our own tiny little
drinking straw, studying our one narrow field,� said Bryan Tilt, an
assistant professor of anthropology at Oregon State University and one
of the study�s authors. �When it comes to dams, we felt a broader
perspective was needed. Because when you put up a dam, it affects
whole ecosystems and whole communities.�

The study, which was funded by the National Science Foundation, is
part of a special issue on dams featured in the summer edition of the
Journal of Environmental Management. The entire special issue was
edited by Tilt and Desiree Tullos, an assistant professor in the
Department of Biological & Ecological Engineering at OSU. Tullos is
another co-author on the study and the principal investigator on the
National Science Foundation grant.

Each scientist was brought in for their piece of the dam puzzle. Lead
author Philip H. Brown of Colby College is an economist who studies
microeconomic issues in economic development. Tullos is an
environmental engineer with expertise in ecohydraulics and hydraulic
modeling. Tilt is an environmental anthropologist who studies the
social and environmental impacts of rural development, with a special
focus on China, where dam construction far outpaces any other nation.
Darrin Magee of Hobart and William Smith Colleges is a geographer
specializing in energy and water issues in China. And OSU�s Aaron Wolf
studies water resources policy and conflict resolution.

The scientists have developed what they call an Integrative Dam
Assessment Modeling tool, or IDAM. The model was designed as a
decision-support tool that policy makers can use to understand
holistically the impacts, costs and benefits of building a dam in any
area.

�It can be used anywhere, with some modifications,� Tilt said, adding
that the researchers have used the tool to study the impact of dams in
China and are continuing that research through a new National Science
Foundation grant this summer.

The dam assessment tool measures the costs associated with a proposed
dam development project and also measures the possible benefits. Each
of the diagrams in the tool consists of 27 individual indicators of
the effects of dam construction, divided into socio-economic,
geopolitical and biophysical themes.

In the published study, the authors illustrated the use of the IDAM
tool by testing it on two hypothetical dams with different design
characteristics.

This summer the research team travels to China again where it will put
the IDAM tool into practice on real dams. Tilt said they will collect
data on two rivers: one that has several dams on it already (the Upper
Mekong River) and one that is slated for dam development in the near
future (the Nu River, also called the Salween).


About Oregon State University: OSU is one of only two U.S.
universities designated a land-, sea-, space- and sun-grant
institution. OSU is also Oregon�s only university designated in the
Carnegie Foundation�s top tier for research institutions, garnering
more than 60 percent of the total federal and private research funding
in the Oregon University System. Its more than 20,300 students come
from all 50 states and more than 80 countries. OSU programs touch
every county within Oregon, and its faculty teach and conduct research
on issues of national and global importance.
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