Paper short abstract:

This paper will compare two large dams' economic, social and environmental impacts in the ecologically fragile and culturally rich Indian Himalaya, using a mixed-methods political ecology approach. Both dams have over 1000MW capacity but also the potential for far-reaching and profound impacts.

Paper long abstract:

The Anthropocene's increasingly panicked politics justify infrastructure with far-reaching irreversible impacts to mitigate and adapt to climate change. Large hydropower dams are an example of this type of infrastructure. Understanding trade-offs around dams is critical within India, given its climate change mitigation and adaptation dilemmas and hydropower potential. The Himalaya provide a suitable landscape for hydropower generation for the nation, but also the potential for disaster, with frequent extreme weather events and earthquakes. Further dam construction will come at a significant cultural, financial and ecological cost. As hydropower scheme design is driven by the challenge of climate change adaptation and mitigation, countries may prefer dams with "storage" from reservoirs or ponds, which can release their water in response to cyclical and seasonal energy and water demand and periods of scarcity. However, the comparative costs and benefits of storage versus non-storage schemes remain contested.

This paper will compare two dams with and without storage in the Indian Himalayas to unpack dam design trade-offs in the region. Both dams were commissioned over 15 years ago in the Indian Himalaya by state-owned companies, Nathpa Jhakri a run-of-river dam and Tehri, a dam with a four cubic kilometres reservoir. I will use a political ecology approach to investigate the differentiated impacts of these dams and the changing narratives of why they were built and for whom. I will draw on data from a timeline of satellite-derived economic activity, stakeholder interviews and document analysis, and hope by reviewing these past dams, to influence future planning.