Greenfield large hydropower investments across southeast Europe face major risks and low realisation rates, according to a new report by CEE Bankwatch, EuroNatur, Riverwatch and WWF Adria published today, which also highlights nine high-risk project cases. Vulnerability to drought, legal issues, increasing public resistance and lack of financing are among the factors which have stopped a slew of large hydropower projects in recent years.

++ The European Investment Bank has financed a series of damaging hydropower projects since 2010, which underline the need to tighten its environmental and social standards, according to a new report published this week by CEE Bankwatch Network. ++

Two brand-new studies for the revitalization of the Sava River and its floodplain have been published presented to key stakeholders from 19 to 22 September as part of the Sava Parks II - Freedom for Sava project: „Sava river restoration from Brežice to Rugvica“ and „Sava.Restore – Connecting the Floodplains for a Healthy Alluvial Forests”

Hydropower plants and dams have detrimental effects on river ecosystems, but they also affect people in negative ways. In a recent study, researchers from the CALTUS Institute Namibia presented a newly developed model to assess the number of people potentially affected by already operating, under construction and planned hydropower projects (HPPs) in the Balkan region.

We are happy to present the Legal Toolkit which provides guidance to activists and civil society organisations in navigating the possibilities for legal actions in river protection. The toolkit will be presented on 29 April (2-4 pm CET) in a webinar. We will be happy to answer your questions and receive feedback on the toolkit.

This baseline survey summarises the value of the Vjosa River system as one of the few remaining reference sites for dynamic floodplains in Europe on the one hand, and reveals the detrimental effects dams could have on the river system on the other. Only one dam will significantly destroy the ecological continuum of a pristine river.

In a recent study, researchers of NOVA University Lisbon evaluated the economic viability and energy productivity of existing and planned small hydropower projects in the European Mediterranean region. They found that currently, they can cover at best 2.6% of gross electricity consumption and 0.47% of primary energy consumption. The real contribution is likely much lower.

Every two years, we analyse the situation of hydropower development in the Balkans, updating the data of existing and planned hydropower plants as well as those currently under construction. Since the last update of this kind in 2018, another 300 HPPs came into operation, leaving hundreds of kilometres of rivers and streams devastated.

In Europe, 91 percent of the planned 8,000 hydropower plants are “small”. But what do small dams really look like and how do they affect nature and species around them? Not many people have ever seen a small dam scheme. This is why we prepared this catalogue visualizing the effects of small hydro with drone footage of existing dams.

Hydropower plants are one of the main causes for the decline of numerous fish species in the Mediterranean region. This is the result of a new study. In total, 251 endangered freshwater fish species along with their stock situation in rivers in the Mediterranean basin were recorded. The impact of existing and planned hydropower plants on these populations was also evaluated.