Session E4: Using a GIS in Basin-Scale Hydropower Planning to Preserve Aquatic Connectivity and Minimize Societal Impacts
Location
Groningen, The Netherlands
Event Website
http://fishpassage.umass.edu/
Start Date
23-6-2015 11:05 AM
End Date
23-6-2015 11:20 AM
Description
Abstract:
Hydropower development is expanding rapidly throughout the world, particularly in developing countries. As undammed basins are tapped for their electric potential, there is a narrow window of opportunity during the planning phase of development to select dam locations in a basin which minimize the loss of aquatic connectivity and other environmental and societal impacts, while maximizing power generation. This presentation will describe The Nature Conservancy’s emerging work to develop a platform of tools and techniques using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to identify scenarios, or combinations of dams in a basin, that strike a balance between the benefits and impacts of hydropower development. An overview of the concepts and architecture of this GIS platform will be presented. Examples of the application of this platform will include case studies from the Magdalena River basin (Columbia), Tapajos River basin (Brazil), and Coatzacoalcos River basin (Mexico).
Session E4: Using a GIS in Basin-Scale Hydropower Planning to Preserve Aquatic Connectivity and Minimize Societal Impacts
Groningen, The Netherlands
Abstract:
Hydropower development is expanding rapidly throughout the world, particularly in developing countries. As undammed basins are tapped for their electric potential, there is a narrow window of opportunity during the planning phase of development to select dam locations in a basin which minimize the loss of aquatic connectivity and other environmental and societal impacts, while maximizing power generation. This presentation will describe The Nature Conservancy’s emerging work to develop a platform of tools and techniques using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to identify scenarios, or combinations of dams in a basin, that strike a balance between the benefits and impacts of hydropower development. An overview of the concepts and architecture of this GIS platform will be presented. Examples of the application of this platform will include case studies from the Magdalena River basin (Columbia), Tapajos River basin (Brazil), and Coatzacoalcos River basin (Mexico).
https://scholarworks.umass.edu/fishpassage_conference/2015/June23/78
Comments
Presenting Author Bio: Erik Martin is a GIS Programmer/Analyst with The Nature Conservancy’s Eastern Division. He focuses on freshwater conservation with a particular emphasis on aquatic connectivity issues, technical GIS analysis, web-based decision-support tools, and workgroup coordination. He holds a Master of GIS from the Pennsylvania State University and a BA in Human Ecology from College of the Atlantic.