The Public's Perception of Run-of-the-river Hydropower across Europe

 
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The Public's Perception of Run-of-the-river Hydropower across Europe

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Venus, T., Hinzmann, M., Bakken, T., Gerdes, H., Godinho, F., Hansen, B., Pinheiro, A. and Sauer, J., 2020: The public's perception of run-of-the-river hydropower across Europe. Energy Policy, 140, p.111422.

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In the European Union, hydropower represents an important component of a renewable energy transition, in part due to its existing infrastructure. A large share of future European hydropower projects will be run-of-the-river schemes. To understand the potential for RoR hydropower development and modernization of the technology as an opportunity for sustainable decentralization, this report uses the Q-methodology to compare public values about RoR hydropower in German, Portuguese and Swedish case studies.

Four perspectives on the importance of RoR hydropower emerged from this analysis:

  • maintain regional control,
  • fight climate change,
  • promote citizen well-being and
  • protect natural ecosystems.

Strong preferences for regional control imply RoR should be managed as distributed generation rather than viewed as part of a centralized, national system like traditional large-scale reservoir hydropower. Based on the importance of citizen well-being and ecological measures, operators could adopt strategies such as river widening and the reconstruction of secondary channels, which help control floods, create recreational opportunities as well as enhance ecological habilitation and biodiversity. Additionally, policymakers could support rigorous monitoring programs to assess the ecological impact of RoR.

The article, to which Mandy Hinzmann and Holger Gerdes from Ecologic Institute contributed essential parts, is available for download [pdf, 1.16 MB, English].

Run-of-the-river (RoR) hydropower represents an opportunity for sustainable decentralization and co-production

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Language
English
Authorship
Terese E. Venus (Technical University of Munich)
Tor Haakon Bakken (Norwegian University of Science and Technology, SINTEF Energy Research)
Francisco Nunes Godinho (Hidroerg)
Bendik Hansen (SINTEF Energy Research)
António Pinheiro (CERIS – Civil Engineering Research and Innovation for Sustainability)
Johannes Sauer (Technical University of Munich)
Funding
Published in
Energy Policy Volume 140, May 2020, 111422
Published by
Year
Dimension
11 S.
ISSN
0301-4215
DOI
Project
Project ID
Table of contents
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Keywords
Run-of-the-river hydropower, energy policy, public perception, decentralization, local stakeholders, public acceptance, decentralized generation
Europe, Germany, Sweden, Portugal
Q-methodology
Read online: The Public's Perception of Run-of-the-river Hydropower across Europe
Project website FIThydro
ProjectHorizon 2020Fish Friendly Innovative Technologies for Hydropower (FIThydro)
 

© FIThydro

Hydropower plants can offer a reliable and clean source of energy. However, these installations can often pose difficult challenges for the surrounding environment, particularly the fish species living in the rivers. FIThydro (Fishfriendly Innovative Technologies for... Read more

Fish Friendly Innovative Technologies for Hydropower (FIThydro)

Duration
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Funding
PublicationBrochureKnowledge, Assessment, and Management for AQUAtic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services aCROSS EU Policies – Brochure
 
AQUACROSS consortium 2016: Knowledge, Assessment, and Management for AQUAtic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services aCROSS EU policies. Brochure. ... Read more

AQUACROSS consortium 2016: Knowledge, Assessment, and Management for AQUAtic Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services aCROSS EU policies. Brochure. The publication is available in German, English, French,  Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish and Swedish.

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Speech:Green Hydropower in Switzerland

Date
Location
Berlin, Germany
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The EPI-Water project aims to assess the effectiveness and the efficiency of Economic Policy Instruments in achieving water policy goals and to identify the preconditions under which they complement or perform better than alternative (e.g., regulatory or voluntary)... Read more

Evaluating Economic Policy Instruments for Sustainable Water Management in Europe (EPI-Water)

Duration
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Funding
PublicationReportEvaluating Economic Policy Instruments for Sustainable Water Management in Europe
 
The EPI-Water project aims to understand how Economic Policy Instruments (EPIs) succeed or fail in directing water resources to uses that reflect social value and priorities. The project, which runs from January 2011 to December 2013, uses a multi-faceted Assessment... Read more

Zetland, David; Hans-Peter Weikard; Gonzalo Delacamra et al. 2012: Evaluating Economic Policy Instruments for Sustainable Water Management in Europe: Review of the Assessment Framework and Toolbox. Ecologic Institute.