BY A STAFF REPORTER
Kathmandu, Feb. 13:Nepal should review its water management system and different hydro-related projects before it sends its suggestions and recommendations to the World Commission on Dams (WCD), an independent and international body formed to review large dams across the globe, experts said here today.
“It has been around 40 years since the construction of bigger barrages like Koshi-Gandak was completed, but we have not made review of any of these projects,” said Ajaya Dixit, a Water Expert, told an interaction “Positive and negative experiences of hydro-related projects in Nepal” organised by National Concerns Society. “Leave alone the negative issues, we have not even been able to discuss whether we have attained the benefits that were expected of these projects.”
Before preparing its report by August this year, the WCD has been studying both positive and negative aspects of various dams in different countries. The commission, with 13 commissioners from different countries, will make a global review of the development effectiveness of large dams and assess alternatives, prepare a framework for options assessment and decision making processes for water resource and energy services and development, and draw internationally acceptable criterion and guidelines for planing, designing, construction, operation, monitoring and decommissioning of dams.
According to experts, the commission studied 50 dams in different countries in 1997. Of them, 24 were found to be satisfactory while half of the rest had rooms for improvement. The remaining dams were found to be inappropriate. “This time around, 10 groups are engaged in dealing with different case studies of different large dams,” said Bikash Pandey, another Water Resources expert.
Even if Nepal does not figure in any of the case studies, its Kulekhani hydropower project is one of the 150 projects being cross-checked by the WCD.
“What is required is the evaluation of the level of risks involved in the hydro-related projects,” noted Dipak Gyawali, a water expert. “Equally important is the demarcation of the rights on the source of water at different levels such as local people’s rights, national level rights, among others,” he said giving an example of the now shut down 25 KW Gajuri Small Scale Hydropower built in Gajuri way back in 1979.
The hydropower was built using the irrigation water thus creating tussle between the market people and local farmers. The small concrete dam built for the hydropower was swept away by flood in 1994 after which the local farmers once again made another dam with local technology (called syauli baandh).
Above 70 per cent of the irrigation systems throughout the Kingdom, according to experts, is based on local technology.
Gyawali warned that there could be a big resistance from the local level if foreign contractors only are involved in making hydro projects.
Experts said that Nepal needs to take lessons from the traditional way of water management system. “So many of our successful hydropower projects built with traditional styles have become lessons in the international arena.”
Stressing on the need of stakeholders’ suggestions on water management issues, Surya Nath Upadhyay, former Secretary at the Ministry of Water Resources, said that there should be the right mechanism and infrastructure. “Development projects should not be kept hostage because of small issues.”