Prospects and Problems of Hydroelectric Projects in Indian Himalayas

Sugandha Singh#1
#

Civil Engineering Department, College of Technology,Pantnagar Uttarakhand, India

1

sugandha.aqua23@gmail.com

Abstract- Water is one of the cleanest sources of energy and has been used since ages to produce hydroelectricity. Himalayas consists of about 100 ranges running parallel west to east from Indus river valley to Brahmaputra river valley. They have a glacier and snow cover of about 35110km2 and an ice reserve of 3735km3. This snow when melts, is an origin for various large rivers like Indus, Ganga, Brahmaputra, etc. With their high slopes and huge quantities of fast moving waters, these Himalayan Rivers have also been looked upon as having large potential to produce hydroelectricity. Some of the largest hydroelectric

power stations made on Himalayan Rivers are Bhakra Nangal project in India, Tehri High Dam being fourth biggest dam in the world, the Tarbela project in Pakistan. There are many environmental problems such as deforestation to make the dam, disturbances to flora and fauna of the region, changing of

surrounding climate which may lead to melting of glaciers at a faster rate causing problems in the future. For this, every such project should get an environmental clearance only after the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is done by ground truthing. There are various social problems also to this like due to submergence of the area population living in the region has to be displaced and provided with new homes and lands which also may hurt their feelings. Disputes between countries due to water distribution are also a big problem. Several structural problems encountered in hydroelectric projects are Reservoir Induced Seismicity (RIS) which is an affect of coupled poroelastic response of the soil to impoundment in reservoir and lake level changes, tunneling in

uncertain rock conditions, structurally unsound rocks, initiation of in-situ tectonic stresses, silting of reservoirs etc. Construction of these projects depends on geological conditions of the area. Shotcrete and wire meshes are used for stabilizing the slope and improving uncertain rock conditions. Prior determination of in-situ stresses should be done such as hydro fracturing technique so that stable support system and tunnels can be designed. Also, Catchment Area Treatment (CAT) can also be planned to avoid silting of reservoirs. Keywords- Environment impact Assessment, Ground truthing, in-situ stresses, hydro fracturing, Reservoir Induced Seismicity (RIS), Catchment Area Treatment

I.

INTRODUCTION

The Himalayas consist of several parallel ranges running west to east, from the Indus River Valley to the Brahmaputra River Valley; they form an arc 2,400 kilometers long, which varies in width from 400 km in the western Kashmir- Xinjiang region to 150 km in the eastern Tibet-Arunachal Pradesh region. The Himalayas stretch across six countries: Bhutan, Nepal, India, Pakistan, China and Afghanistan. Himalayas have huge stocks of water in the form of snow and ice, with a total area of 35,110km2 of glacier and ice cover, and a total ice reserve of 3,735km3. Hundreds of small and large rivers originate and run through the Himalayan region. It is the source of some of the largest rivers in Asia the Indus, Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Irrawaddy the basins of which are home to millions of people. Glacial and snow melt is an important source of the flows of these rivers. These rivers have high slopes and huge quantities of fast-moving waters due to which they have large potential of generating large hydroelectric power. In recent years, many projects have come up for building Dams in the Himalayas. Massive plans are underway in Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan to build several hundred dams in the region, with over 150,000MW of additional capacity proposed in the next 20 years in the four countries. If all the planned capacity expansion is achieved, the Himalayan region could possibly have the highest concentration of dams in the world. Even though, there are various developmental prospects related to such projects but on the contrary, there are various problems associated with them. It will mainly transform the landscape, ecology and economy of the region and will have long term effect. Submergence of land, homes, fields and forests on a large scale will displace hundreds of thousands of people. Damming and diversion of

rivers will severely disrupt the downstream flows, impacting agriculture and fisheries and threatening livelihoods of entire population. Migration of workers will affect the culture and identity of local people. As the total area is seismically active, these projects have high risks of catastrophic failure due to earthquakes. Seismicity followed by impoundment, large lake-level changes, or filling at a later time above highest water level is known as Reservoirinduced Seismicity (RIS). RIS can be categorized as initial seismicity depending on coupled poro-elastic response of the reservoir and protracted seismicity depending on frequency and amplitude of lake-level changes. The location of the seismicity is governed by the nature of faulting below and near the reservoir. The most serious issue is that of climate change and global warming and its affect on the Himalayas which is being aggravated by the construction of dams. This is resulting in an accelerated melting of ice and depletion of massive water store of the region. As glaciers melt, water in the rivers will rise, and dams will be subjected too much higher flows, raising concerns of dam safety, increased flooding and submergence. With the subsequent depletion of glaciers there will be much lower annual flows, affecting the performance of such huge investments. Climate change will also increase the threats of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) and possible cascading failures of downstream dams. With the development of water resources projects in the hilly region particularly in Himalayan regions the disturbing force has increased. The prior knowledge of these prevailing stress field helps in the alignment and the design of support system for the underground cavern, estimation of grouting pressure in the dam foundation, design of steel liners for Head Race Tunnel, Penstock, etc.

For rivers with deep bedrock (30 meters or more deep), building a rock fill or concrete-faced rock fill dam (CFRD) with a positive cutoff, such as a plastic concrete diaphragm wall, is an effective measure to avoid the need to excavate down to the bedrock. To ensure the stability of rock slopes, reinforcing the rock mass by driving 30-meter-long tunnels, with additional cross-cuts, into the hill slope and then back-filling the tunnels and cuts with concrete and steel can be done. As a solution measure, Catchment Area Treatment (CAT) plan can be incorporated. The main objective of the CAT plan is to incorporate measures in the catchment area that reduce silt load problems for hydro-electric projects. The aim is also to buffer the flow of water by reducing storm water peaks, and increasing dry season flows through better infiltration. Also, every project should get through a proper Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and get an environment clearance to it.

II.

NEED OF HYDROPOWER PROJECTS

India continues to be plagued by power and energy shortages. Overall for the country, peak power demand in the year 2007-08 was 108,886 MW, while the peak power demand met was 90,793 MW; there was a shortfall of 18,093MW or 16.6% of peak demand. The energy demand in the same year was 737,052GWh, towards which energy availability was 664,660GWh. This was a deficit of 72,392GWh, or 9.8%. A large portion of Indian society does not have access to electricity. According to the Working Group on Power for the 11th Five Year Plan, 154,567 villages, or a full 26% of the inhabited villages in the country, were without access to electricity in 2006. The household-level picture is worse; according to the 2001 Census, 44.2% of households in India did not have access to electricity. Shortages affecting urban centers are also leading to demonstrations, violence and riots in some parts of

the country. At the same time, vulnerable sections of society, like the poor, and small and marginal farmers, are finding access to electricity more and more difficult due to a lack of physical access or increasing tariffs. The Government of India also argues for an increase in power generation capacity in order to meet some declared social objectives. These, as articulated in the National Electricity Policy of February 2005, include: Access to Electricity Available for all households in the next five years; Availability of Power Demand to be fully met by 2012 with energy and peaking shortages to be overcome (the Power on Demand policy); Per capita availability of electricity to be increased to over 1,000 units (1,000 KWh) by 2012; Minimum lifeline consumption of 1 unit (1 KWh)/household/day by the year 2012. There is also another reason for the spree of hydropower projects; a large part of the undeveloped hydropower potential is located in the Himalayan states of Arunachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim, states which have relatively low industrial development.

III.

POTENTIAL & PLANS

In the last few years, four countries namely, Pakistan, India, Bhutan and Nepal have prepared plans for massive dam building in the Himalayas. Several hundred dams are now proposed for the region, which could lead to capacity additions of over 150,000 MW in the next 20 years. All these countries have built dams in the Himalayas in the past to generate hydropower and to store water for irrigation and other needs. Among Indias earliest multipurpose projects was the Bhakra Nangal Dam, a rim station project on the Satluj, a tributary of the Indus, with an installed capacity of 1,200 MW, completed in 1962. Hydropower constitutes an important source of power for all four countries, but the significance differs.

In India, out of 143,311MW of total installed capacity, the capacity from hydropower is 35,909MW i.e., 25.1% of the total. Table 1 gives the ultimate hydropower potential in India and the power exploited.
TABLE I ULTIMATE HYDROPOWER POTENTIAL & EXPLOITED POTENTIAL

TABLE 2 EXISTING, UNDER-CONSTRUCTION & PLANNED HYDROPOWER PROJECTS

No. of Projects Existing Under Construction Planned Total 74 37 318 429

Capacity (MW) 15,208 17,765 93,615 126,588

INDIA(Himalaya) Total claimed potential(MW) Capacity already developed(MW) % Capacity remaining to be developed 118,210 26,376

INDIA(Rest) 30,491 19,641

IV.
77.69 35.58

PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH HYDROELECTRIC PROJECTS

A. Unstable Rock Slopes: There are several

projects in the Himalayas that may involve slope cuts more than 50 meters high. This includes excavating for building side channel spillways at rock fill dams or for removal of weathered or slumped rocks, which typically are present at many sites in the Himalayas. Removal of these rocks may be needed to provide a sound foundation for placement of the dam and a proper junction between the dam body and abutments, or for building side channel spillways at rock fill dams. Rock conditions play a pivotal role in the design of such slopes and the need for adequate rock reinforcement. Rock supports already proposed for the situation included 18-meterlong cable bolts; 9-, 12-, and 15-meter-long rock anchors; shotcrete; and wire mesh. The special measures involved reinforcing the rock mass by driving 30-meter-long tunnels, with additional cross-cuts, into the hill slope and then backfilling the tunnels and cuts with concrete and steel.

India declared its intentions with the launch of the 50,000 MW Initiative by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on May 24, 2003. This initiative fast tracked hydropower development by taking up timebound preparation of the Preliminary Feasibility Reports (PFRs) of 162 new hydroelectric schemes totaling around 50,000MW. India has plans to build this capacity by 2017 and then, in the 10 years following, to add another 67,000MW of hydropower. Construction is ongoing for many of the projects including the 2,000 MW Lower Subansiri project, the 400MW Koteshwar project and the 1,000MW Karcham Wangtoo. Thus, the hydropower capacity addition planned in just the next 10 years in this region is close to 80,000MW. Many of these projects are already under construction. Table 2 enlists the existing, under construction and proposed hydropower projects in Indian Himalayas.

B. In Situ Stresses: With the development of

water resources projects in the hilly region particularly in Himalayan regions the disturbing force has increased. These stresses may be large enough to mobilize the strength of the rock mass and create failure, rock bursts, squeezing and deformation in the form of wall closure and roof or underground surface subsidence. Excavation in highly stressed rock masses is difficult and requires more support. When designing underground excavations in rocks, the goal is to minimize stress concentration problems, create a stress field as uniformly distributed as possible in the excavation of underground structures so that the optimum support systems is provided without compromising the safety of the structure. Stress fields alter the permeability of rock mass compressive stresses tend to close natural fractures whereas tensile stresses tend to open them. This method is used to find out the magnitude and direction of Maximum and Minimum Horizontal stress in deep drill holes or in shallow drill holes which is normally not possible with other methods. Hydraulic fracturing involves applying hydraulic pressure to a drill hole to determine the fracture pressure and hence the stress. C. Silting of Reservoirs: Silting of reservoir is a major problem and is inevitable but its pace can be retarded. It mainly depends on two factors, type of sediments entering the reservoir and the detention time. Various measures such as using wire screens and building check dams are taken to reduce the problem.

A. Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs):

A glacier lake outburst flood is technically a sudden and often catastrophic flood that occurs during a volcanic eruption, can occur when a lake contained by a glacier or a terminal moraine dam fails. This can happen due to erosion, a buildup of water and avalanche of rock or heavy snow, an earthquake or if a large enough portion of a glacier breaks off and massively displaces the water in a glacial lake at its pace. B. Reservoir Induced Seismicity (RIS): In most cases of reservoir-induced seismicity, seismicity follows the impoundment, large lakelevel changes, or filling at a later time above the highest water level achieved until then. It is further classified as initial seismicity and protracted seismicity. Initial seismicity results from the instantaneous effect of loading and the delayed effect of pore pressure diffusion. Spatially there is a general stabilization and an absence of seismicity beneath the deepest part of the reservoir and widespread seismicity on the periphery. This period of increased seismicity is followed by a gradual decay in activity to pre impoundment levels, indicating the cessation of the coupled poroelastic response to the impoundment. In protracted seismicity, the pore pressure increase causes the seismicity and is related to the frequency and amplitude of lakelevel changes. Peak changes in pore pressures occur directly beneath the lake and decrease away from it. Strength changes show delays with respect to lake levels. Other than these two major impacts, there are also problems of deforestation, submergence of huge land, soil erosion and various other ecological changes which may prove to be bad for the clean environment of the Great Himalayas.

V.

IMPACTS OF HYDROELECTRIC PROJECTS

As we know that, such problems always face opposition from inhabitants of the region, thus there are various problems related with these projects. These problems are environmental, social, cultural, geological and structural. These problems are explained in detail below.

VI.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)

increasing dry infiltration.

season

flows

through

better

EIA provides a definite insight of the consequences supposed to be generated due to execution of any developmental project in different domains of environment such as land, water, air, biological and socio-economic. The impact assessment of land environment deals with evaluation and collection of base line data on catchment characteristics such as climate morphology, slope, soils, geology, land use, erosion intensity, hydrology, sediment yield and sediment transport. Water environment studies provide baseline data of water quality and aquatic environment, whereas, the air environment deals with the basic quality of air in the project ambience. The biological environment is evaluated to establish the floral and faunal diversity of the area. Socioeconomic environment on the other hand deals with social and cultural values of the people living in the vicinity of project and in the catchment area. Based on the environmental impact studies, prediction of impacts is carried out to ameliorate the expected changes by introducing Environmental Management Plans (EMP) while implementing the project.

This plan is targeted towards overall improvement in the environment of catchment region. All the activities are aimed at treating the degraded and potential areas of severe soil erosion. The plan provides benefits due to biological and engineering measures and its utility in maintaining the ecosystem. The plan with objectives such as prevention of gully erosion, enhancing the forest cover for increasing soil binding capacity and arresting total sediment flow in the reservoir and flowing waters.

VIII.

TEHRI HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT

The Tehri Hydel Project was announced in 1965. It harnesses the water of two important Himalayan rivers- Bhagirathi and Bhilangna and has a potential of 2400MW. It forms a lake spreading over 42sq. km, impounds 3.22 million cu m of water and is expected to irrigate 2, 70,000 hectares of land. This dam is of 260.5m height, is the largest in Asia and among the largest in the world. The soil on the upper slopes is unstable and grouting can only take care of surface problems. The volume of water envisaged would further weaken the slopes and affect the dams life span. The construction of this big project in an active seismic zone had rendered the dam unsafe as no tests regarding the safety of the dam from earthquakes experienced frequently in the region, had been carried out so far. This project in the Garhwal hills is situated in one of the most quake-prone zones of the world. 39 villages of 3355 families totally submerged along with Tehri town while 72 villages with about 2074 families partially submerged. People were angry over the unrealistic amount of compensation as the rehabilitation package was made in 1976, the project is vastly delayed and the current market value of the

VII. CATCHMENT AREA TREATMENT (CAT) PLAN

Catchment Area Treatment (CAT) plans aims to improve the quality of environmental and especially watershed services from the catchment. The CAT plan focuses on the free-draining catchment area, i.e., the area from which the water comes directly to the dam without being intercepted by other dams. Thus, if other dams exist upstream, the catchment of these dams are usually not included. The main objective of the CAT plan is to incorporate measures in the catchment area that reduce silt load problems for hydro-electric projects. The aim is also to buffer the flow of water by reducing storm water peaks, and

compensation is nothing. Those lucky enough to get compensation are still awaiting their promised land. As a solution measure for environmental up gradation, Catchment Area Treatment plan was incorporated. It was implemented with involvement of local people in a forestation process and in treatment of agricultural area on the principles of community participation. In addition, other structures like Stone Check Dams, Crate wire mesh check dams, stream bank protection, and stabilization of land slipped slopes, diversion drains and brush wood check dams were constructed to prevent soil erosion. Sloping fields were bench terraced by cutting and filling, with filling supported by retaining stone wall, which is the most popular mechanism of soil conservation practice in hilly regions.

through Institutional Mechanism to publicize the positive impacts of environmental up gradation through development of hydro projects and to remove the misunderstanding created by anti-dam proponents. During the construction of any project, there are problems of instability of slopes and thus landslides, also reservoir induced seismicity. As the Himalayas have younger rocks which are thus unstable in nature and are not safe until proper precautionary measures such as shotcrete, wire mesh, grouting, drainage, etc, are not taken. Also, the Himalayas lie in an active seismic zone V, thus the problem of tectonic stresses also arises which should be taken care of prior to construction. Also, silting of reservoir is again a big problem which is inevitable. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is carried out by the ground truthing process in area of project which assesses the impact of the project on land, water, and air, biological, socio-economic. After this assessment, Environmental Management Plan (EMP) is implemented such as Catchment Area Treatment. It mainly involves stream bank protection, and stabilization of land slipped slopes, diversion drains and also construction of check dams. In nutshell, everything can be generated but water cannot. Once it is lost it will be lost forever, it cannot be generated. So the need of the hour is to use this wonderful gift of god to meet our need not to greed. We must keep ourselves away from the natural cycle of the water and should not disturb it in the name of so called development. We must keep in mind that Nature can live without man but man cannot.

IX.

CONCLUSION

The Great Indian Himalayas are an asset to the country which covers the north Indian part and provides pleasant environment with great potential to generate power. The total capacity claimed from the Indian Himalayas is 118,210MW and yet 77.69% of it is left to be developed. Many projects have been proposed, many are under-construction and many are working. In order to develop environmental friendly hydro projects on priority, there is a need to involve effective mechanism for environmental clearances and addressing the issue of environmental concerns in the overall interest of local population and the country. Awareness campaign should be launched

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