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A large dam in Hunan, China
Image: Zhang Zhiwei/Zoonar/picture allianceImage: Zhang Zhiwei/Zoonar/picture alliance

Hydropower

Hydropower is supposed to be 'clean,' as it doesn't rely on the burning of fossil fuels. But this form of renewable energy is controversial for several reasons.

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All Content on this topic

People make their way through the tunnel after a ceremony ahead of the opening of the century-old Tunnel as a new tourist attraction at at the Niagara Parks Power Station in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

Niagara Falls fascinates with thundering water

Niagara Falls, a natural wonder that graces the border between Canada and the US, draws millions of visitors every year.
Nature and EnvironmentOctober 27, 20248 images
An ariel view of village covered in mud near Mariana, southwestern Brazil, on November 6, 2015

Brazil seals $23 billion from mining firms over dam collapse

The Brazilian government signed a compensation deal with BHP and Vale over the 2015 environmental disaster.
Nature and EnvironmentOctober 25, 2024
Drought at a Colombian hydropower plant

Can hydropower hold its own against weather extremes?

What is the role of the water-powered renewable in a world facing increasing drought?
Nature and EnvironmentOctober 7, 2024
Nigeria | Maiduguri | Überschwemmungen in Nigeria

Homes lost, relatives missing in floods in Nigeria

More than 400,000 people have already been affected after heavy rain caused floods and widespread destruction.
CatastropheSeptember 21, 202401:32 min
DW Sendung The 77 Percent | Energie aus Maniokabfällen

Ghanaian ecopreneur turns cassava waste into clean energy

A Ghanaian ecopreneur is making this a reality by transforming discarded cassava peels into powerful cooking briquettes.
SocietySeptember 18, 202404:48 min
Ukraine | Alternative energy sources

Ukraine: The residents switching to alternative energy

Fearing power grid failures during the winter, some residents are switching to alternative sources of energy.
Nature and EnvironmentSeptember 16, 202402:40 min
People affected by floods are escorted through flood water on a military boat in the city of Maiduguri, northeastern Nigeria.

Nigeria grapples with severe flooding

Days after a dam collapsed in Nigeria, emergency crews are struggling to reach people trapped by the floodwaters.
CatastropheSeptember 14, 202401:55 min
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed speaks at the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam

Could Egypt and Ethiopia's tensions escalate into a war?

New deals threaten to turn the GERD dam dispute into a regional crisis. Could Turkish mediation prevent escalation?
PoliticsSeptember 14, 2024
A river flows in Kabugao, Philippines

Philippines: Hydropower plans threaten Indigenous people

The Philippines' plans to build hydropower plants has raised alarm among Indigenous communities.
Nature and EnvironmentSeptember 13, 202402:41 min
View of a survivor being helped to climb a wall, following devastating floods after a dam collapse in Sudan

Flooding hampers relief efforts after dam collapse in Sudan

In Sudan, relief groups are struggling to get aid to tens of thousands of people affected by a dam collapse.
CatastropheAugust 28, 202401:45 min
Bangladesch | Hochwasser in Feni

Fact check: India did not cause "artificial" flooding

Many are blaming India for causing floods in Bangladesh that have displaced more than five million people. Is it true?
PoliticsAugust 27, 2024
This picture shows buildings near the Arbaat Dam, 40km north of Port Sudan after it collapsed following heavy rains and torrential floods on August 25, 2024.

Sudan dam bursts in heavy rains; 30 dead, thousands impacted

Heavy rains and floods caused the Arbaat Dam near Port Sudan to burst, affecting about 50,000 people.
CatastropheAugust 27, 2024
An aeriel photo of flooded sttreets in Kherson, Ukraine

Could Russia be prosecuted for environmental war crimes?

Ukraine wants to hold Russia accountable for the environmental destruction caused by its war.
Nature and EnvironmentAugust 20, 2024
DW Thumbnail | Planet A

How Sweden balances emission cuts with economic growth

Sweden has cut 80% of its net emissions since 1990 — while growing its economy twofold. How have they done it?
Nature and EnvironmentAugust 12, 2024
Doku Plan KW 28

Nuclear fusion’s hope - The dream of endless clean energy

Could nuclear fusion generate an infinite amount of clean energy?
InnovationJuly 11, 202442:34 min
Rescuers transfer stranded residents

China: Dam breach forces almost 6,000 people to evacuate

Videos showed water flooding through the breach, overturning trucks, and inundating houses in Hunan province.
Nature and EnvironmentJuly 6, 2024
Water of the Katse Dam in the green Maluti-Mountains in Lesotho

Lesotho's water: Will villagers be compensated?

Experts want revenue from the sale of water to compensate villagers for their resettlement.
Nature and EnvironmentJune 17, 2024
Aerial view of the floating solar energy plant with a capacity of 40 megawatts of energy in Huainan city, east China's Anhui province

IEA: Clean energy investment to reach $2 trillion in 2024

More money is being invested in solar power than in all other sources of electricity combined, the IEA report says.
BusinessJune 6, 2024
A boy stands on dry and cracked ground

Climate change impacts on hydropower in the Middle East

Through Turkey, Syria and Iraq, the Euphrates-Tigris basin is suffering both water stress and a hydropower deficit.
ClimateMay 31, 2024
Norwegian dam at Braskereidfoss fails in August 2023. Image shows a wrecked structure and masses of water flooding out.

Deadly dam failures: Cause, effect and prevention

No dam is flood-proof, as flooding after days of heavy rains in southern Brazil has shown. Here's what you need to know.
ScienceMay 3, 2024
Residents sift through rubble as they recover their belongings after the Nairobi river burst its banks and destroyed their homes

Dozens dead after dam bursts in Kenya

At least 50 people are dead and dozens more missing after a dam burst in Mai Mahiu, a town in south-western Kenya.
CatastropheApril 29, 202402:00 min
A man carries some belongings in a yellow bag while walking on muddy waters in an area heavily affected by floods in Nairobi, a picture taken on April 25, 2024.

Kenya flooding leaves dozens dead after dam collapse

The disaster has also damaged infrastructure and caused schools to be shut down.
CatastropheApril 29, 2024
Spent nuclear fuel storage grounds at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine

Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia: How safe is the nuclear plant?

The International Atomic Energy Agency warned Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia power plant was 'dangerously close to an accident.'
ScienceApril 16, 2024
A video still shot shows smoke rising from a hydroelectric plant in Italy

Italy dam blast leaves several dead and missing

Firefighters are searching for missing people. It is not immediately clear what caused the blast.
CatastropheApril 9, 2024
Rescuers evacuate a woman from her home

Russian dam bursts after days of unrelenting rain

Russian authorities say more than 4,000 people have been evacuated in the Orenburg region near Kazakhstan.
CatastropheApril 6, 202401:31 min
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, left, is in China for five days of meetings

Chinese subsidies endanger world economy, says US' Yellen

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said that China's subsidy-fueled "overcapacity" could overload the global market.
BusinessApril 5, 2024
DW Podcast | Inside Europe | provisorisch f ROAD

Inside Europe 21 March 2024

Ukrainian drones strike Russian oil refineries, Ireland’s Taoiseach Leo Varadkar resigns, and the World Happiness Index reveals the opposite for young people in Western Europe. Also: an environment-themed second half featuring: a vision for a post fossil-fuel Ukraine, hydro plans threaten Scotland’s Loch Ness, Montpellier’s free public transport and the UK Climate Choir movement strikes a chord.
PoliticsMarch 21, 202455:00 min
Living Planet 210318 Podcast Picture Teaser

Deep Dive: The iron grip of Brazil's mining industry

Brazil's iron ore industry is vital for the economy but it's wreaking havoc on the environment. What's to be done?
Nature and EnvironmentMarch 14, 202429:47 min
A gray-haired woman holding a sunflower (Ursula Sladek) and a gray-haired, bearded man (Michael Sladek) smile broadly as they stand between rows of solar panels

EU: Clean energy movement gaining traction

Citizen energy collectives with democratic credentials in five EU countries help Europe move towards carbon neutrality.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 26, 2024
A group of workers use wheelbarrows to help them build sand dams

Kenya: Can sand dams fix drought and flooding?

In rural Kenya, communities are building sand dams that store and filter rainwater for use as drinking water and for far
ScienceFebruary 21, 202404:47 min
A child runs between two rows of solar panels in a field, mountains can be seen in the background. The Hyperion solar park, Stymfalia, Peloponnese, Greece

Energy democracy takes off in Greece

High energy prices make sustainable energy communities appealing for Greeks.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 19, 2024
Made Ruhrgebiet Zeche Zollverein

Coalfields in transition

Structural change in a coal region. High tech instead of coal and steel.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 15, 202405:15 min
Drone image of 20 rows of solar panels in a field. In the background are houses, trees and hills, Ladek-Zdroj, Poland, September 25, 2023

Poland: Spa town turns to renewable energy for cleaner air

After choking on polluted air for many years, the town of Ladek-Zdroj turned to renewables for a breath of fresh air.
Nature and EnvironmentFebruary 11, 2024
Drone image of solar panels on the roof of a building. The panels belong to the Izgrei energy community in Belozem, Bulgaria

Bulgaria: Pioneering grassroots energy project bears fruit

Bulgaria lags behind when it comes to clean energy production. But a tiny energy cooperative is leading the way.
Nature and EnvironmentJanuary 29, 2024
A wide band of blue solar panels stretches across a field along a road in the Rhein-Sieg district in north-western Germany

How a German town wants to reinvent clean energy sharing

In Germany, citizen prosumers can't distribute their green electricity via the grid. Does this violate EU regulations?
Nature and EnvironmentJanuary 22, 2024
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi (R) welcomes the Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (L) during an official ceremony in Cairo, Egypt on January 21, 2024.

El-Sissi says Egypt will not tolerate threats to Somalia

The Egyptian leader's words came after Ethiopia said it might recognize breakaway Somaliland to gain access to the sea.
ConflictsJanuary 21, 2024
A worker at a factory making solar photovoltaic modules in China

China's solar sector steams ahead of EU, US

The US and Europe can't compete with China in producing solar modules. That's the stark message from a new report.
BusinessJanuary 1, 2024
People walk at the venue of the COP28 United Nations climate summit in Dubai

COP28: Consensus on fossil fuel phaseout proves elusive

With time running out at the UN climate summit, delegates are struggling to reach a key agreement on fossil fuels.
ClimateDecember 11, 202302:28 min
Dead fish are seen on the drained bottom of the Nova Kakhovka reservoir after the Nova Kakhovka dam collapsed.

Ukraine prepares war crimes case over environmental damage

Ukraine is preparing groundbreaking legal action to hold Russia accountable for large-scale environmental destruction.
ConflictsDecember 4, 202302:15 min
Chinese flags flutter in front of chimneys from a coal-fired power station

Is China a climate hero or a fossil fuel baddie?

Is China revolutionizing the energy transition, or are its fossil ambitions unstoppable?
Nature and EnvironmentDecember 4, 2023
Dam with waterfall

How to solve our big dam problem?

Hydro is the largest source of renewable energy – with a terrible social and environmental record. Can we clean it up?
Nature and EnvironmentNovember 20, 202311:25 min
DW "Global Us" Sendungslogo Composite

Water: How we treat our most precious resource

The Aral Sea has become a salt desert. Lake Victoria is full of plastic. How green is hydropower?
Nature and EnvironmentNovember 17, 202326:06 min
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Ghana: Devastating flooding after hydroelectric dam breaks

A deluge of water from a major hydroelectric dam in Ghana caused flooding and damage to homes and key infrastruture.
Nature and EnvironmentOctober 20, 202301:49 min
A pot with steam coming out the top with a woman in the background in India

Jharkhand: Where livelihoods depend on coal

How are coal mining communities in Jharkhand affected by India's energy transition efforts?
Nature and EnvironmentOctober 4, 202307:51 min
Pokrovske resident Iryna Boroshnova, her son and DW's Max Zander stand in an empty water basin.

Ukraine dam disaster creates ongoing water shortages

The destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam has created an ongoing water crisis in a region dependent on agriculture.
ConflictsSeptember 26, 202303:51 min
An above view of the mini hydropower plant "Hydrobox", that channels water from the Sagana river in Central Kenya

Mini hydropower plants transform rural communities in Kenya

A man from rural Kenya is revolutionizing his region with an invention that delivers cheap and clean electricity.
Nature and EnvironmentSeptember 25, 202305:39 min
DW Eco Africa (Sendungslogo Composite)

Eco Africa — The Environment Magazine

Improving water management worldwide — from micro hydropower in rural Kenya to harvesting fog in Gran Canaria.
Nature and EnvironmentSeptember 21, 202326:06 min
A man behind a solar array

Croatia's solar energy gets a citizen-led boost

Croatians battle old socialist stereotypes and government red tape to bring solar energy to their country.
Nature and EnvironmentSeptember 21, 2023
People who survived the deadly storm that hit Libya comfort their friend who lost his family members

Libya flood: Protester anger could lead to crackdown

Observers have little hope that the military-backed government will do anything more than secure its funding and power.
PoliticsSeptember 19, 2023
A man wearing a white coat stands on the edge of a building that has fallen down

Thousands still missing in Libya's flood disaster

In the coastal city of Derna, dangerous conditions are hampering recovery efforts.
CatastropheSeptember 18, 202302:00 min