One in four hydropower project sites along the Himalayan Rivers are likely to face severe damage from earthquake-triggered landslides, according to a research. #UttarakhandDisaster #earthquake @nivedita_Him @yamunajiye @Upadhyay_Cavita @Indian_Rivers @hridayeshjoshi

The research was conducted by researchers from the University of Potsdam, Germany, who compiled damages to 41 hydropower projects after Nepal’s 2015 #earthquake, and used that data to estimate earthquake-triggered damages to projects in other parts of #Himalayas. @yamunajiye

The model developed by the research team took into account the combined effect of ground shaking (Peak Ground acceleration) & river steepness (Mχ) and was applied to projects in Indian, Nepalese and Bhutanese #Himalayas.
@yamunajiye @hridayeshjoshi @nivedita_Him @Upadhyay_Cavita

The findings indicate that more than 10% of Himalayan rivers may be unsuitable for hydropower infrastructure given high probabilities of high co-seismic damages and ~25% of Hydropower projects are located along these reaches. #UttarakhandDisaster
#earthquake

The study points to an urgent need to re-evaluate hydropower development in the Himalayas. The model used in the study would also help in making a more accurate assessment of risks at locations for potential hydropower plants. #UttarakhandDisaster