Renewable energy: Report claims large hydro power projects damaging to the environment The report’s author said: ‘Large hydropower doesn’t have a future, that is our blunt conclusion’

A new study has concluded large-scale hydropower projects in European and North America have been disastrous for the environment and that similar projects in the developing world should not be built.

Hydropower makes up nearly 71 per cent of the world’s renewable energy and has long been viewed as one of the most dependable forms of green electricity. But in Europe and North America, many dams are being removed either for safety or environmental reasons.

The scientists’ report sets out a litany of problems with many of the dams built in the last century, many of which were critical to the economic development of their respective countries.

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The vast majority were more expensive than they planned, destroyed the local environment and contributed to climate change by releasing greenhouse gases from the land they flood.

One of the report’s authors Professor Emilio Moran from Michigan State University told BBC News.”They make a rosy picture of the benefits, which are not fulfilled and the costs are ignored and passed on to society much later.”

While developing countries are reducing the amount of hydroelectricity they use, vast projects are in the pipelines in much of the developing world.

The authors say that with huge pressure on countries to press ahead with renewable energy developments, a mix of energy sources including hydro is the most sustainable approach.

The report said that frequently the benefits of the power produced does not feed through to local residents, who are left to face the environmental problems and food shortages they can cause.

Professor Moran said: “Large hydropower doesn’t have a future, that is our blunt conclusion. To keep hydropower as part of the mix in the 21st Century we should combine multiple sources of renewable energy”

“There should be more investment in solar, wind and biomass, and hydro when appropriate – as long as we hold them to rigorous standards where the costs and benefits are truly transparent.”