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Africa News afrol News
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Africa News afrol News
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afrol.com, 18 November - The World Commission on Dams' final report was presented at the official launch in London, this week, which gathered together South African Minister of Education Kader Asmal, former South African President Nelson Mandela, as well as World Bank President James Wolfensohn. "After this report, we can no longer say, 'We did not know'," stated environmentalists. - The World Commission on Dams' final report forms a landmark in the history of the development and operations of dams, said Maritta Koch-Weser, Director General of IUCN - The World Conservation Union. "It paves the way for a new approach, one that builds on looking at all energy development options, one that recognises people's rights from the outset, one that more truthfully assesses all risks. It also points to the importance of assessing alternatives to irrigation, water storage and hydropower." Together with the World Bank, IUCN - The World Conservation Union initiated the World Commission on Dams and its 2 and a half years long review in a process which started in 1997. The World Bank is also the party most heavily criticized in the report it itself had funded. The report, going through several case studies on great dam construction projects, documents that national governments and credit institutions, such as the World Bank, have a long history of being too eager to finance prestigious mega-projects. Also Mandela's ex-Government in South Africa is found among the parties funding unnecessary dam projects. The report's main example of South Africa's involvement in dam projects harmful to people and environment, that could have been avoided is the the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP). Africa’s largest infrastructure project, the LHWP, is a massive, multi-dam scheme built to divert water from Lesotho’s Maloti Mountains to South Africa’s industrial Gauteng Province. The second stage of the project, dispossessing thousands rural farmers of their assets, could have been avoided by the cheaper renovation of South Africa's water pipelines, spilling up to 50% of the water they transport. The report comes at a time when rivers, lakes and wetlands on a world-wide level are in peril. Currently 30% of fresh water fish and over 800 other freshwater species are on the brink of extinction. Millions of people are losing their homes, land and livelihoods through natural disasters, floods and droughts, or in connection with the construction of new dams. - Among the Commission's findings, said Koch-Weser at the official launch of the report, "I value especially its honest look at the true costs. Whilst recognising the benefits that dams have made to societies, significant is the assessment that dams have resulted in irreversible loss of species and ecosystems. After this report, we can no longer say, 'We did not know.'" Koch-Weser stressed that the report marks the beginning of a huge task. "The report provides us with solid technical recommendations, which if really applied, in a consultative and participatory way among stakeholders, can make a difference. IUCN, as a unique umbrella organisation of 1,000 members including States, Ministries, and NGOs stands ready to facilitate dialogue among all parties and contribute to the implementation of the report's recommendations." Meanwhile, the South African and Basotho LHWP project keeps moving on, and a third dam is projected. The Dam Report admits that the LHWP "has had an undeniably profound impact on Lesotho’s economy." In 1998 it accounted for 13.6% of Lesotho’s GDP. Royalties from the sale of water and project-related customs dues make up 27.8 percent of all government revenue. Yet, the country’s poor, and especially the dispossessed, "have seen little of this economic boom," the conclusion goes.
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