The Good, the Bad and the Inefficient: Assessing Dams With the Hydrocalculator

Dams are vital sources of electricity and irrigation, critical to improving the lives of millions worldwide. From environmental, economic and social perspectives, however, dams are by no means created equal. Some can be relatively benign while others have extensive negative impacts. Perhaps the single most important way to minimize impacts is to choose “good” dam sites. Doing so early on requires simple tools that generate comparable results across proposed locations.