Dam construction involves higher environmental and social costs than previously estimated, a new study has suggested. The study, cited by Phys.org, was carried out by researchers from Michigan State University and found that “When a large dam is built, the result is a downstream loss of a great many fish species that are important to riverine populations. These communities will have to continue somehow making a living despite dwindling fish stocks for 15 or 20 years, for example, and the costs of these projects don’t take such economic and social losses into account,” as explained by the lead author of the study, Emilio Moran. A lot of developed countries have stopped building large-scale dams and have switched to smaller hydropower installations but developing countries such as Brazil are still investing in large dam construction. “We argue that if the construction of large dams in developing countries is to continue, […]