Up until this point in time, we use to think that the dams are one of the cleanest sources of man-made energy. But in a recent study by Washington State University (WSU), it has been found out the hydropower is not as clean as it claims to be. It is an “underappreciated source of Greenhouse gasses.”
The scientists and researchers from WSU studied and examined more than 200 reports that were dedicated to find the man-made sources like dams and reservoirs are a major source to global warming. The findings were astounding as more than 1 gigaton of carbon dioxide every year was added to the atmosphere by these dams and reservoirs.
This is almost close to 1.3% of greenhouse gas emissions done by humans. To give an idea, the greenhouse gas emissions done by the country Canada is way less than the emission done by reservoirs across the world. It's also less than one-sixth of the greenhouse gas emissions produced in the United States.
But the BIG question still remains that how exactly do reservoirs and dams fund to greenhouse gas emissions?
The dams and reservoirs are made when rivers are stopped from their natural flow. This obstruction is done for water storage by the means of lake formation and to create energy.
But the formation of lake or reservoirs provides a perfect environment for microorganisms to generate greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide. These gases bubble up to the surface of the reservoir and enter the atmosphere.
One of the co-researcher of the study said that the percentage is significant, especially given the boom in dam construction around the world. He further continued, on any lake or reservoir you can see bubbles rising from the bottom they're usually methane.
Image Credit: TechTimes
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