ENV334H1 Lecture 9: L9 - Dams
Document Summary
Reasons to build dams/reservoirs: prevent floods, rivers quite variable and they can flood whole areas and on bad years can wipe out infrastructure, provide drinking water. Hydroelectricity in canada: a third of dams and hydroelectricity are in quebec, hydroelectricity represents 60% of power generated here, = important in canada because have so much water. Increase transportation: dam created reservoirs which was really huge, displaced 13 cities, millions of people and flooded a lot of historical sites, created landslides. Lower mekong river: yellow words = planned dams. In laos built dams for hydroelectricity: planning whole suite of dams along river, countries downstream affected, cambodia flooded by water coming down mekong river (houses on stilts, when dam the river, change the river discharge, flow. Itaipu dam, parana river, brazil-paraguay: built between brazil and paraguay, created huge reservoir, still producing enough energy for everything paraguay needs but also 20% of energy supplied in brazil.
