Hydropower

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The wilds of Siberia and the Far East - where tigers roam dense forests and indigenous communities tend reindeer herds in lush valleys-are faced with a dire threat: massive hydroelectric dams.

The Russian economy has developed rapidly since the early 1990s, and today the demand for energy exceeds the country's electricity production and supply capabilities. The government projects that expanding electricity production capacity to attract and support industrial and resource extraction projects in Siberia and the Far East will bring much-needed social and economic development to the territory east of the Urals. The rising cost and demand for petroleum-based fuel sources and the added pressure of global climate change are also pushing Russia to develop non-carbon energy alternatives so it can export and capitalize on the maximum volume of its fossil fuel stores. Russia's primary hydroelectric company, RusHydro, proposes to dam the country's mighty rivers as a fix-all solution to energy and development needs.

Currently, dams are planned for the Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Sakha, and Amur regions of Russia. While they have the potential to produce thousands of megawatts of cheap electricity, the local populations are unlikely to benefit, as the projected output is already almost entirely earmarked for export or energy-intensive industrial use (such as notoriously dirty aluminum plants). Domestic consumers could be deprived of even modest economic gain to show for the great social and environmental injustice that they stand to suffer due to flooding, displacement, and diminished resources.

We continue to work in Siberia and the Russian Far East jointly with our partners and community groups to fight Russia's fast-track plans for extensive and destructive damming to meet its development and energy goals.

Click here to learn more about our hydropower work.