ADB_book_18 April.qxp - Himalayan Document Centre - icimod

assessment of wind energy and lack of technicalexpertise are the main obstacles to wind powerdevelopment in Nepal. Although sufficient wind dataare not available, a number of areas have constanthigh wind speed, such as several mountain ridges,the Mustang Valley, and the Khumbu region. Apotential of 200 MW wind power in a 12 km corridorfrom Kagbeni to Chusung could generate about 500gigawatt hour (GWh) (CBS 1998). Wind or wind/solarphotovoltaic hybrid systems using small wind turbinetechnology currently available in the internationalmarket may well be feasible in some areas of Nepal.The nature of wind patterns indicates that smallscale(1–50 kW) wind generators may be feasible inremote and isolated places (MOPE 2003).Energy and EnvironmentEnergy and environment are related in complexways. The production, distribution, and consumptionof energy have direct and indirect environmentalimplications. Some of the environmental issues areglobal, like the greenhouse effect and climatechange. However, Nepal’s contribution to globalenvironmental degradation is insignificant as Nepal’sper capita annual energy consumption is one of thelowest in the world. Most environmental concernsrelated to energy sources and uses in Nepal are,therefore, related to national and localconsequences.Biomass EnergyThe trend suggests that demand for biomass energyhas been rising and will continue to rise. Lowefficiency is a common feature in the traditionalresidential use of biomass energy. Environmentalproblems include the following.Indoor air pollution. Inefficient burning ofbiomass coupled with poor ventilation is theprinciple cause of poor indoor air quality in ruralNepal (MOPE 2003). Indoor air pollution hasdetrimental health implications (see Chapter 7).Pressure on forest. Fuelwood is the mainsource of energy in rural Nepal. This is puttingsignificant pressure on the forest resources, eventhough this may not be the primary cause ofdeforestation in the country. As the human andlivestock population continue to grow, demand forfirewood will rise in the absence of other appropriatealternatives.Impact on agriculture. As firewood becomesscarce, rural people are increasingly burningagricultural residues and cow or buffalo dung asdomestic cooking and heating fuel. People in thedensely populated Terai regions, and some mid-Hillsareas, particularly rely on these sources. In Nepal’straditional farming system, agricultural residues andanimal wastes are the main source of organic matterand nutrients for the soil. Burning these deprives thesoil of organic matter and essential nutrients,affecting crop yield.Fossil FuelsThe share of fossil fuels in Nepal’s overall energyconsumption is very small. However, consumptionhas been growing consistently (CBS 2004). Industriesand automobiles are the main consumers ofimported fossil fuels. Environmental concerns offossil fuel consumption relate to emission-related airpollution, which is becoming a sensitive issue inurban and industrial areas, and their peripheries.HydropowerHydropower is renewable clean energy. Therefore,environmental concerns of hydropower are relatedto development and production stages rather thanconsumption. The severity of these concernsdepends on the size, type, and location ofhydropower projects—the bigger the project, thegreater the environmental impacts. Reservoirprojects are likely to result in much higherenvironmental and social impacts than run-of-riverprojects. Many bigger hydropower projects aroundthe world have become environmentally and sociallycontentious and many have encounteredunanticipated difficulties in the course ofdevelopment or operation. For example, the Arun IIIhydropower project in Nepal has been droppedfollowing protracted environmental debate, and theKulekhani reservoir project encountered a heavysiltation problem that was unsuspected during itsplanning and design. The main environmentalconcerns related to bigger hydropower projectsinclude the following.Impacts downstream. Water diversion canresult in undesirable consequences downstream.These typically include, but are not limited to,depriving downstream users of water for irrigationand other traditional uses, degradation of waterquality, and reduction in flows harming riparianecosystems and aquatic life.Inundation. Inundation upstream of dams canresult in submergence of houses and settlements,fertile agricultural land, forest and other vegetation,and others.Displacement. People can be displaced asdirect or indirect consequences of a project, orlivelihoods can be affected due to degradation orloss of private land and properties, resources, andlocal infrastructure and amenities. Quite often poor74 Environment Assessment of Nepal : Emerging Issues and Challenges