Abstract
Editorial on the Research Topic
Balancing Hydropower and Freshwater Environments in the Global South
The construction of hydropower dams is growing rapidly across the southern hemisphere and developing world (Winemiller et al., 2016), with most new dams being built in South America and Asia (Baumgartner et al., 2014). Freshwater ecosystems are tremendously impacted by dam construction and reservoir operation (Brown et al., 2014). For instance, the Living Planet Index indicates an 89% loss in biodiversity in freshwater environments globally arising from all forms of river development (Deinet et al., 2020). Dams alter flow (Timpe and Kaplan 2017) and sediment regimes (Wang et al., 2018), which impact ecosystem services, wetland conservation, water quality, land fertility, and fisheries productivity (Reilly et al., 2018).
Balancing Hydropower and Freshwater Environments in the Global South
The construction of hydropower dams is growing rapidly across the southern hemisphere and developing world (Winemiller et al., 2016), with most new dams being built in South America and Asia (Baumgartner et al., 2014). Freshwater ecosystems are tremendously impacted by dam construction and reservoir operation (Brown et al., 2014). For instance, the Living Planet Index indicates an 89% loss in biodiversity in freshwater environments globally arising from all forms of river development (Deinet et al., 2020). Dams alter flow (Timpe and Kaplan 2017) and sediment regimes (Wang et al., 2018), which impact ecosystem services, wetland conservation, water quality, land fertility, and fisheries productivity (Reilly et al., 2018).
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 459-459 |
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Journal | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
| Volume | 9 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 13 Oct 2021 |