International Report Reveals Flaws in U.S. Dam Regulation

11/20/2000

Prompts Call on New President and Congress to Reassess Federally Owned Dams in the United States

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11/20/2000 -- -- November 20, 2000. Washington, DC . . .A report issued by the World Commission on Dams released in the U.S. today calls for a change in thinking about existing dams and improving their economic, environmental and social performance. The Commission proposes that constructed dams are changeable, and should be subject to periodic reviews to get the greatest benefits for current social, economic and environmental conditions. The U.S. owns and operates 1,932 dams across the nation, but once they are constructed, requires no further comprehensive review. American conservation organizations today called on the new President and Congress to establish a procedure for periodically reassessing the impacts and benefits of federally owned dams.

"Federal taxpayers have an investment worth hundreds of billions of dollars in federal dams and water projects," said Steve Malloch of Trout Unlimited. "No rational investor would make that kind of investment and then forget to manage it. We should bring these dams into line with current needs."

On November 16, 2000, the World Commission on Dams--a multi-stakeholder international commission sponsored by the World Bank and the World Conservation Union (IUCN)--released an appraisal of the promise and delivery of large dams worldwide. The report found, in many cases, the economic benefits of dams are much oversold, and the environmental and social costs much underestimated. While the Commission's report focuses primarily on new dam construction, it also addresses the ongoing impacts of existing dams, and recommends maximizing benefits from existing dams. Foremost of its recommendations for existing dams is periodic comprehensive reevaluation of the facilities and performance of dams, and more frequent (every five to 10 years), evaluation of dam operations.

"The U.S. has been a world leader in building dams," said Margaret Bowman of American Rivers. "It is time that we become world leaders in managing them."

In a letter to the next President of the United States and new Congress (see below), a coalition of conservation groups wrote, "If we now examined those almost two thousand major federal dams, we would be able to find many ways to improve their performance. In many cases, troublesome environmental impacts caused by dams and water projects can be mitigated simply by changing operations--changing the timing of water releases or using modern hydrological analysis to optimize benefits. In some cases modernizing facilities--installing efficient turbines and generators, eliminating wasted water and power, or installing fish ladders--can increase benefits. In a small number of cases those impacts are simply the price paid for the benefits and we either accept the cost or remove the dam."

"Most of the federal dams were built decades, even a century, ago," said Malloch. "Their management and facilities may not have changed since the day they were built and are now obsolete or woefully incomplete."

Useful Web resources on dams include:

Signing the letter were 35 conservation, environmental and recreation organizations.

November 20, 2000

To the New President and 107th Congress:

We need to change the way we think about dams in this country. Most dams in the United States were built to serve important social purposes. We know, however, that social goals change. We also know that dams do not last forever. The needs of the country that built stirring monuments to engineering such as Grand Coolee, Hoover and Glen Canyon Dams have changed. But the purposes and uses and facilities for most federal dams are set the day they are authorized and never change. We build them and then seem to forget that the world around them changes.

The federal government owns at least 1932 significant dams. Most of these were authorized, designed and built decades ago, some almost a century ago. Some of these dams no longer serve the original purpose for which they were built. For most, the effect they have on rivers, fish and wildlife has never been examined closely because they were built long before the development of scientific environmental impact analysis. We know that these dams do indeed have significant environmental impacts--the litany of threatened and endangered species listings, declines in river-dependent fish and wildlife, and problems with water quality leave little doubt.

If we now examined those almost two thousand major federal dams, we would be able to find many ways to improve their performance. In many cases, troublesome environmental impacts caused by dams and water projects can be mitigated simply by changing operations--changing the timing of water releases or using modern hydrological analysis to optimize benefits. In some cases modernizing facilities--installing efficient turbines and generators, eliminating wasted water and power, or installing fish ladders--can increase benefits. In a small number of cases those impacts are simply the price paid for the benefits and we either accept the cost or remove the dam.

On November 16, 2000, the World Commission on Dams--a multi-stakeholder international commission--released the results of a thoughtful and full appraisal of the promise and delivery of large dam projects worldwide. This World Bank and World Conservation Union (IUCN) sponsored effort finds that in many cases, the economic benefits of dams are much oversold, and the environmental and social costs much underestimated. While the Commission's report focuses primarily on new dam construction, it also addresses the ongoing impacts of existing dams, and makes recommendations on how to maximize benefits from existing dams. Foremost of its recommendations for existing dams is a call for periodic comprehensive reevaluation of the facilities and performance of dams, and an evaluation of dam operations every 5 to 10 years.

The United States is proud to have been the world leader in building large dams. But we cannot claim leadership in adapting our dams to today's needs based on today's scientific and technical knowledge--we are at odds with one of the World Commission on Dams' core recommendations. Although some privately owned dams in the US conduct periodic reevaluation of their facilities and performance, it is rare for federally owned dams to conduct such a reevaluation. In short, the dams owned by the US government are not keeping up with the times.

We call on you, the new President and the 107th Congress, to undertake a periodic reassessment of federally owned dams, their facilities and operations, as well as environmental, economic and social performance. The World Commission on Dams has an excellent idea. We urge you to follow that recommendation, and exercise the oversight authority you have in periodic reviews.

American Rivers · American Whitewater · Defenders of Wildlife · Endangered Species Coalition · Environmental Defense · Friends of the Earth · International River Network · Izaak Walton League of America · Natural Resources Defense Council · Trout Unlimited

Alabama Rivers Alliance · Appalachian Mountain Club · California Outdoors · CalTrout · Coldwater Fisheries Coalition · Connecticut/ Rhode Island Coastal Fly Fishers · Conservation Law Foundation · Environmental Action! · Friends of the Eel River · Friends of the River · Hackensack Riverkeeper Inc. · High Country Citizens' Alliance · Idaho Rivers United · Institute for Fisheries Research · Kern River Alliance · Marion County Water Watch · Mississippi River Revival · Montana River Action · Natural Heritage Institute · Natural Resources Council of Maine · North Carolina Watershed Coalition · Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations · RiverTales.com · Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance · Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper · WaterWatch of Oregon · West Virginia Rivers Coalition

Date: 11/20/2000