To the New York Times : ” Hydropower, a renewable energy source often overshadowed by excitement about wind and solar power, is enjoying something of a global resurgence.”
” Huge, controversial dam projects have recently made headlines in Brazil, Chile and Laos. Many developing countries, hungry for energy to supply their growing economies (…) are determined to keep building more modest-sized dams too. “
” Record amounts of hydropower capacity came online in 2008 and 2009 (…) according to Richard Taylor, executive director of the International Hydropower Association in London. “
The controversy is about larger dams which flood large valleys and thus lead to methane emissions as biomass decays.
But done correctly and responsibly, hydro can be an interesting renewable energy source. The United States recently discovered their dams could add 12 gigawatts — without any new ones…