Dams and hydropower facilities harm the environment and, when headponds or reservoirs are flooded, can produce carbon dioxide and methane for the life of the dam. Ontario is about to embark on a whole new era of dam building. Ontario has 224 operating hydropower plants and only 3 with fish passage.
By the way, Ontario Power Generation has been selling Clean Energy Credits for hydroelectric since 2013.
NO MORE NEW HYDROELECTRIC DAMS IN ONTARIO!!
Blog
Photo by Linda Heron
Category Archives: Hydro Impacts 101: The Trade-offs
Is it Renewable Energy if it Degrades the Environment?
Is it really renewable energy when it degrades the environment and impacts on communities in a negative way?
There are 241 hydroelectric dams in Ontario, and only 3 facilities have provided any form of fish passage.
The effects of dams and waterpower facilities on fisheries have been well documented over the past century, and include the loss or serious decline of many iconic fish species, which are resources of importance to Ontario’s economy, biodiversity, and natural and cultural heritage.
Ontario Rivers Alliance featured in environmental film
SUDBURY: The contributions of the Ontario Rivers Alliance (ORA) are being featured in an online series of short film documentaries dedicated to conservation issues.
In Fieldwork – the Art of Conservation, ORA Chair Linda Heron talks about the organization’s commitment to protecting Ontario rivers, and its focus on one of the most challenging issues facing communities and riverine ecosystems today – hydroelectric power development. Continue reading
Hydro Impacts 101: The Trade-offs
ORA’s report, Hydro Impacts 101: The Trade-offs, identifies some of the environmental impacts that can and do occur at dams and waterpower facilities. It will become clear that waterpower is seldom clean or green, and that some rivers should not be dammed at all. In addition, this Report recommends some ways of reducing the impacts, and of improving the regulatory process for waterpower in Ontario. Read our report here…. Continue reading