New Framework for Dam Development and Development Decisions

Author: World Commission on Dams Report
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2005-03-01
Features: By 2000, more than 45,000 large dams had been built worldwide, transforming the management of water and energy. However, their impacts have generated escalating debates and conflicts. Determining the role of dams in meeting future water and energy needs is crucial and helps illustrate the complex challenges our society faces in development. The World Commission on Dams Report has the following characteristics:
It is unprecedented in its achievement as a global public policy outcome.
It brings together governments, the private sector, and civil society in a unified process.
It provides the first comprehensive and independent review of dam operations and impacts.
It proposes a new framework for water and energy development.
It sets an agenda for future decision-making with seven strategic priorities, along with corresponding standards and guidelines.
To challenge our assumptions, the Commission provides solid, rigorous, and clear evidence, demonstrating precisely why many countries decided to build dams and how dams have affected humans, plants, and animals positively or negatively.
The New Framework for Decision-Making on Dams and Development is an important read on the future of dam development. At the same time, it describes the evolving development landscape, where new perspectives, choices, and solutions will fundamentally transform traditional business models.