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Downstream Hydrological Impacts of Hydropower Development in the Upper Mekong Basin

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  • Timo Räsänen
  • Jorma Koponen
  • Hannu Lauri
  • Matti Kummu

Abstract

The Mekong River Basin in Southeast Asia is experiencing extensive hydropower development. Concerns have been raised about the consequences of the development for the ecosystems, livelihoods and food security in the region. The largest planned hydropower dam cascade in the basin, the Lancang-Jiang cascade, is currently under construction and already partly built into the Upper Mekong Basin, China. In this paper we assess the impact of the Lancang-Jiang cascade on downstream hydrology by using a combination of a hydrological model and a reservoir cascade optimization model. The hydrological changes were quantified in detail at the Chiang Saen gauging station in Thailand, the first gauge station downstream from the cascade, and in lesser detail at four other downstream locations in the Mekong mainstream. We found that on average the Lancang-Jiang cascade increased the December–May discharge by 34–155 % and decreased the July–September discharge by 29–36 % at Chiang Saen. Furthermore, the Lancang-Jiang cascade reduced (increased) the range of hydrological variability during the wet season (dry season) months. The dry season hydrological changes were significant also in all downstream gauging stations, even as far as Kratie in Cambodia. Thus the Mekong’s hydrological regime has been significantly altered by the Lancang-Jiang cascade, but what the consequences are for ecosystems and livelihoods, needs further study. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012

Suggested Citation

  • Timo Räsänen & Jorma Koponen & Hannu Lauri & Matti Kummu, 2012. "Downstream Hydrological Impacts of Hydropower Development in the Upper Mekong Basin," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 26(12), pages 3495-3513, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:waterr:v:26:y:2012:i:12:p:3495-3513
    DOI: 10.1007/s11269-012-0087-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. W. Douven & M. Mul & L. Son & N. Bakker & G. Radosevich & A. Hendriks, 2014. "Games to Create Awareness and Design Policies for Transboundary Cooperation in River Basins: Lessons from the Shariva Game of the Mekong River Commission," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(5), pages 1431-1447, March.
    3. Huiyan Wang & Yong Li & Jia Li & Mengyuan Yu, 2020. "Internalization of External Benefits Brought by Hydropower Development," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-15, January.
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    5. Seemanta Bhagabati & Akiyuki Kawasaki & Mukand Babel & Peter Rogers & Sarawut Ninsawat, 2014. "A Cooperative Game Analysis of Transboundary Hydropower Development in the Lower Mekong: Case of the 3S Sub-basins," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(11), pages 3417-3437, September.
    6. Jian Tang & Xin-An Yin & Pan Yang & ZhiFeng Yang, 2014. "Assessment of Contributions of Climatic Variation and Human Activities to Streamflow Changes in the Lancang River, China," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(10), pages 2953-2966, August.
    7. Ina Pohle & Anne Gädeke & Sabine Schümberg & Christoph Hinz & Hagen Koch, 2019. "Management Influences on Stream-Flow Variability in the Past and Under Potential Climate Change in a Central European Mining Region," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 33(15), pages 5191-5206, December.
    8. Jaap Evers & Assela Pathirana, 2018. "Adaptation to climate change in the Mekong River Basin: introduction to the special issue," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 149(1), pages 1-11, July.
    9. Dogmus, Özge Can & Nielsen, Jonas Østergaard, 2020. "The on-paper hydropower boom: A case study of corruption in the hydropower sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    10. Cong-Min Liu & Jun Qiu & Fang-Fang Li, 2019. "Recovery Degree of the Natural Flow Regimes and the Corresponding Economic Costs for Reservoir Operation in Fish Spawning Seasons," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-15, May.
    11. Ruby W. Grantham & Murray A. Rudd, 2017. "Household susceptibility to hydrological change in the Lower Mekong Basin," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 41(1), pages 3-17, February.
    12. Dogmus, Özge Can & Nielsen, Jonas Ø., 2019. "Is the hydropower boom actually taking place? A case study of a South East European country, Bosnia and Herzegovina," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 278-289.
    13. Penghao Ye & Senmao Xia & Yu Xiong & Chaoyang Liu & Fei Li & Jiamin Liang & Huarong Zhang, 2020. "Did an Ultra-Low Emissions Policy on Coal-Fueled Thermal Power Reduce the Harmful Emissions? Evidence from Three Typical Air Pollutants Abatement in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-19, November.
    14. Horstmann, Britta & Hein, Jonas, 2017. "Aligning climate change mitigation and sustainable development under the UNFCCC: a critical assessment of the Clean Development Mechanism, the Green Climate Fund and REDD+," IDOS Studies, German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS), volume 96, number 96.

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