73
parable fossil-fuel station by a factor of up to four (Giles 2006 ). Energy policies
that do not take such emissions into account may cause external effects to the
global climate and affected communities.
Another example is the loss of natural fl oodplains. In Germany, around 70 %
of originally natural fl oodplains have been disconnected from rivers or lost by
built infrastructure (Brunotte et al. 2009 ). This has led to severe – also economic – damages. Especially in rural areas, the ecosystem services of nutrient
retention and carbon sequestration in restored natural fl oodplains often exceed
the value of built infrastructure (Scholz et al. 2012 ). MWEPs that do not take
into account these ecosystem services and only look at costs of man-made fl ood
protection vs. costs of ecological restoration are hardly effi cient in
cost-benefi t-considerations.
These are only selected examples. Costs and benefi ts are always project-specifi c
and site-dependent. But in general, it can be concluded that any comprehensive
assessment has to account for all ecosystem services (including ecological impacts)
and the costs of their deterioration or the benefi ts that they may provide for humans.
Any policy that is based on an incomplete assessment of costs and benefi ts (because
it focuses only on tangible costs and benefi ts or on costs and benefi ts that merely
affect the business sector) is likely to be incomplete. If MEWP shall be sustainable
in the long run (meaning that the decision for the MEWP is not considered as a fault
after a few years), comprehensive economic valuation is not only required, but
essential for choosing the right decisions.
5.3.3 Social Confl icts
Our language refl ects […] ancient roots: ‘rivalry’ comes from the Latin rivalis, or ‘one
using the same river as another.’ Riparians – countries or provinces bordering the same
river – are often rivals for the water they share (Wolf et al. 2005 , p. 80).
Social confl icts are often closely related to the distribution of benefi ts and costs
(Bernauer et al. 2012 ). In the real world, most MWEPs that generate benefi ts only
to some groups in society and losses to others are subject to a potential confl ict.
These benefi ts and losses are very often associated with power relations. Ohlsson
( 2000 ) argues that the source of MWEPs confl ict is not water scarcity itself but the
required institutional change following large scale engineering to govern the scarce
resource. The Human Development Report (UNDP 2006 , p. 2) also states that the
“scarcity at the heart of the global water crisis is rooted in power, poverty and
inequality, not in physical availability”.
Here, one important step to avoid or reduce confl icts is to explicitly address distributive impacts in decision support schemes. Who are the individuals or societal
groups affected by the MWEPs? Are indigenous people or vulnerable groups particularly affected? What are alternatives? How can people be compensated? Thus it
is decisive to include distributive aspects into (economic) analysis of major water
5 Neglected Values of Major Water Engineering Projects…
parable fossil-fuel station by a factor of up to four (Giles 2006 ). Energy policies
that do not take such emissions into account may cause external effects to the
global climate and affected communities.
Another example is the loss of natural fl oodplains. In Germany, around 70 %
of originally natural fl oodplains have been disconnected from rivers or lost by
built infrastructure (Brunotte et al. 2009 ). This has led to severe – also economic – damages. Especially in rural areas, the ecosystem services of nutrient
retention and carbon sequestration in restored natural fl oodplains often exceed
the value of built infrastructure (Scholz et al. 2012 ). MWEPs that do not take
into account these ecosystem services and only look at costs of man-made fl ood
protection vs. costs of ecological restoration are hardly effi cient in
cost-benefi t-considerations.
These are only selected examples. Costs and benefi ts are always project-specifi c
and site-dependent. But in general, it can be concluded that any comprehensive
assessment has to account for all ecosystem services (including ecological impacts)
and the costs of their deterioration or the benefi ts that they may provide for humans.
Any policy that is based on an incomplete assessment of costs and benefi ts (because
it focuses only on tangible costs and benefi ts or on costs and benefi ts that merely
affect the business sector) is likely to be incomplete. If MEWP shall be sustainable
in the long run (meaning that the decision for the MEWP is not considered as a fault
after a few years), comprehensive economic valuation is not only required, but
essential for choosing the right decisions.
5.3.3 Social Confl icts
Our language refl ects […] ancient roots: ‘rivalry’ comes from the Latin rivalis, or ‘one
using the same river as another.’ Riparians – countries or provinces bordering the same
river – are often rivals for the water they share (Wolf et al. 2005 , p. 80).
Social confl icts are often closely related to the distribution of benefi ts and costs
(Bernauer et al. 2012 ). In the real world, most MWEPs that generate benefi ts only
to some groups in society and losses to others are subject to a potential confl ict.
These benefi ts and losses are very often associated with power relations. Ohlsson
( 2000 ) argues that the source of MWEPs confl ict is not water scarcity itself but the
required institutional change following large scale engineering to govern the scarce
resource. The Human Development Report (UNDP 2006 , p. 2) also states that the
“scarcity at the heart of the global water crisis is rooted in power, poverty and
inequality, not in physical availability”.
Here, one important step to avoid or reduce confl icts is to explicitly address distributive impacts in decision support schemes. Who are the individuals or societal
groups affected by the MWEPs? Are indigenous people or vulnerable groups particularly affected? What are alternatives? How can people be compensated? Thus it
is decisive to include distributive aspects into (economic) analysis of major water
5 Neglected Values of Major Water Engineering Projects…