A recent study on 2015 revealed that building dams in the Himalayan region associated with many risks. The study was conducted based on the Nepal earthquake. As a result of the 2015 Nepal earthquake, country temporarily lost its 20% hydropower capacity and more than 30 hydropower projects were damaged. Two years before, the flooding in Uttarakhand resulted in damage of at least 10 hydropower projects in operation and under construction. Currently, 37 hydropower projects are ongoing in Uttarakhand. The study reveals that many hydropower projects in Nepal were wiped out by moving debris.
The researchers from Institute of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Potsdam, Potsdam Golm, Germany analyzed reports on damages hydropower plants in Nepal and concluded that the damage is caused to plants in the aftermath of the quake was due to land slides triggered by the quake rather than the earthquake itself. The team analyzed 273 projects that are in operation, under construction or being planned in the Indian, Nepalese, and Bhutan Himalayas. They found that 25%nof them are risk-prone, are likely to experience damages due to quake.Researchers urge a re evaluation of the hydro power projects in the region. Currently, 600 large dams have been built or under construction in the seismic zone areas of Himalaya, but none of them is built in a way that is to withstand the worst earthquakes that could hit the region. According to Downearth report, Himalayas have the highest dam density in the world.
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