To dam or not to dam? Five years on from the World Commission on Dams

WWF has made a fervent plea, in its report To dam or not to dam? Five years on from the World Commission on Dams, to have a rethink on big dams. The World Commission on Dams was established in 1998 as an independent, international, multi-stakeholder process to address what had become one of the most controversial areas of infrastructure development. The report shows that dams can damage drown or even dry out wetlands, an important source of water. They also destroy fisheries and threaten endangered species. WWF adds, “This is not the engineering heyday of the 1950s when dams were seen as the hallmark of development. We know dams can cause damage and we must put this knowledge to work," In Belize, the US$30 million Chalillo Dam was meant to reduce electricity imports and lower electricity prices. Yet since its recent completion, local people have seen an average increase of 12 per cent in electricity prices while the dam has also flooded 1,000ha of pristine rainforest.