Construction Of Hydroelectric Dams Research Articles

Impactos da UHE de Belo Monte para os pescadores artesanais da Colônia Z-57, em Altamira, PA, Brasil.

The trauma that resulted from the construction of large hydroelectric dams in the Amazon is marked by major social and environmental restructuring, plunder, and impacts, on Indigenous Lands, Conservation Units, and residents on the outskirts of cities or through the country roads. In general, the effects caused by the Belo Monte HPP gain prominence and production, in which one of them composes the objective of this article: to analyze the impacts on the fishing territory. Having as methodological path the bibliographic review, field, and relative work with the fishermen of the Fishing Colony Z-57. It appears that the installation of the plant ended up deleteriously altering the systemic and cultural relations, under which the fishing territory is expressed. Compromising it, translating into low fishing stocks in the communities; a decrease of up to 70% in fisheries production and, consequently, an increase in pain and economic costs for carrying out the activity. It was evident that the legal frameworks and the licensing instruments, all the judicialization resulting from these infrastructure projects, and the struggle imposed on their installation, were not capable of safeguarding the interests of society - fishermen, specifically - in the face of the despoliation effect of the construction of the hydroelectric dam on the fishing territory.

Characterization of sperm quality in Brycon hilarii: How does morphology affect sperm movement?

Brycon hilarii is a neotropical fish whose population in rivers is being threatened by overfishing, construction of hydroelectric dams, transposition of riverbeds, and pollution. Fundamental knowledge of the reproductive characteristics of this species is necessary to enable its breeding in captivity, for aquaculture as well as for biological conservation. The aim of this study was to investigate and describe the sperm parameters, their correlations, and relevant factors, and how these issues can affect sperm quality in B. hilarii. Sperm was collected after hormonal induction using carp pituitary homogenate. Spermatozoa concentration, total length, motility, and percentage of normal cells were measured to be 2.85 × 109 cells mL−1, 40.28 µm, 68.1%, and 51.6%, respectively. Tail abnormalities were most frequent; however, head abnormalities were closely related to practically all sperm kinetic parameters. Present results suggest that these abnormalities affect motility and movement kinetics, and modifying the pattern of sperm cell movement, sinuosity of movement and vigor. The potential application of this study in aquaculture management of B. hilarii is crucial for the artificial reproduction of fish and represents a significant contribution to the knowledge of its reproductive biology, facilitating the reproduction of the species.

From sink to source: high inter-annual variability in the carbon budget of a Southern African wetland.

We report on three years of continuous monitoring of carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) emissions in two contrasting wetland areas of the Okavango Delta, Botswana: a perennial swamp and a seasonal floodplain. The hydrographic zones of the Okavango Delta possess distinct attributes (e.g. vegetation zonation, hydrology) which dictate their respective greenhouse gas (GHG) temporal emission patterns and magnitude. The perennial swamp was a net source of carbon (expressed in CO2-eq units), while the seasonal swamp was a sink in 2018. Despite differences in vegetation types and lifecycles, the net CO2 uptake was comparable at the two sites studied in 2018/2020 (−894.2 ± 127.4 g m−2 yr−1 at the perennial swamp, average of the 2018 and 2020 budgets, and −1024.5 ± 134.7 g m−2 yr−1 at the seasonal floodplain). The annual budgets of CH4 were however a factor of three larger at the permanent swamp in 2018 compared to the seasonal floodplain. Both ecosystems were sensitive to drought, which switched these sinks of atmospheric CO2 into sources in 2019. This phenomenon was particularly strong at the seasonal floodplain (net annual loss of CO2 of 1572.4 ± 158.1 g m−2), due to a sharp decrease in gross primary productivity. Similarly, drought caused CH4 emissions at the seasonal floodplain to decrease by a factor of 4 in 2019 compared to the previous year, but emissions from the perennial swamp were unaffected. Our study demonstrates that complex and divergent processes can coexist within the same landscape, and that meteorological anomalies can significantly perturb the balance of the individual terms of the GHG budget. Seasonal floodplains are particularly sensitive to drought, which exacerbate carbon losses to the atmosphere, and it is crucial to improve our understanding of the role played by such wetlands in order to better forecast how their emissions might evolve in a changing climate. Studying such hydro-ecosystems, particularly in the data-poor tropics, and how natural stressors such as drought affect them, can also inform on the potential impacts of man-made perturbations (e.g. construction of hydro-electric dams) and how these might be mitigated. Given the contrasting effects of drought on the CO2 and CH4 flux terms, it is crucial to evaluate an ecosystem's complete carbon budget instead of treating these GHGs in isolation.This article is part of a discussion meeting issue ‘Rising methane: is warming feeding warming? (part 2)’.

EFFECTS OF HYDROELECTRIC DAM CONSTRUCTION ON LAND USE LAND COVER CHANGES IN BUI NATIONAL PARK, GHANA

Abstract The construction of hydroelectric dams in forest reserves has become a matter of concern for biodiversity conservationists. Spatio-temporal change of land cover in the Bui National Park was analyzed using indices calculations of the landscape based on land cover maps obtained from Landsat satellite images for pre-and post-dam construction periods. Significant changes in land cover following the dam construction were observed. Notable changes include the built-up areas and water body, while the forest area decreased. Significant reduction in rainfall and an increase in temperature were observed between the pre-and post-dam construction periods. Increased human activities within the reserve after dam construction could likely compound the changes in land cover.

Review on Governance in Hydroelectric Projects and Impacts on Natural Resources

This article reviewed the literature to highlight how governance in hydroelectric enterprises is configured and the impacts on natural resources resulting from this type of energy production. The methodological procedures were based on the PRISMA recommendation (Main Items for Reporting Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis) and indexed articles were used from the SCOPUS database. It was evidenced that more than 1/3 of the studies were conducted in Brazil, highlighting the potential of the Amazon region of the country for the construction of hydroelectric dams. Four essential subjects were identified as to be observed by the governance of these enterprises: stakeholder participation, habitat fragmentation, social impacts, and impacts on fish species. These subjects constitute three categories that synthesize governance in hydroelectric projects and the impacts on natural resources: energy policies – which generate benefits for the private sector and contemplate very little the local communities and the environment; water resources and fish - the impacts are related to the type of enterprise to be built, which can compromise the migration and reproduction of fish, in addition to the increasing concentration of nutrients in reservoirs and changes of the water quality; and biodiversity and ecosystem – which are affected by the fragmentation and alteration of natural habitats caused by dam floods.

The dangers of the construction of hydroelectric dams upstream of the Mekong River adversely effect on the ecosystems and livelihoods of people in the Mekong Delta, Viet Nam

The main purpose of the article is with the results of scientific and serious research to let the world know the enormous harm of upstream hydroelectric dams, mainly of China, causing huge, multifaceted, and global damage. impact on the downstream area, but especially on the Mekong Delta of Vietnam: "Wetland" will become "dead land" The development of hydro-electric projects of the up-stream Mekong countries has been and will be inevitable and greatly impact on the down-stream areas, in which the Mekong Delta is suffering a lot of losses., especially, for Viet Nam.. The Processes have been happening at the same time: The process of depleting water, for agriculture, for industry, for daily life and people's livelihoods. The processes at the same time, the effects that resonate with the process of climate change cause great harm. The drought has accelerated the acidification process, because the potential drought of acid sulfate soil (1,700,000 ha) will become intense, damaging the ecosystem and human livelihoods..The drought due to the construction of hydroelectric dams upstream (especially Lan Thuong river, China) makes the process of salinization with saline intrusion fierce (seawater 4 gr/L) Many, penetrating into the interior fields more than 100KM, the harm is extremely great. If want to reduce the harm, the Mekong River Commission must ask the upstream countries to share it with the downstream

Are large-scale hydroelectric dams inherently undemocratic?

Construction of large-scale hydroelectric dams has increased in recent decades in the Global South and emerging economies. Population resettlement is one of the most severe socioeconomic impacts caused by dam construction. Processes aiming to mitigate its impacts and restore livelihoods are often described as inadequate. The resettlement process’ ineffectiveness could be explained by persistent deficiency in citizen participation, which is also a sign of the impacted population not being able to participate in the process affecting their lives. Our research presents a medium-N comparative study showing the pathways explaining deficiency of participation across 23 large-scale hydroelectric dams in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. We conducted a fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis based on information from a qualitative meta-analysis and secondary sources. Our results suggest that there are at least two scenarios to explain deficiency in participation. The first scenario includes dams constructed during autocracies, mostly before the release of the World Commission on Dams guidelines. The second scenario involves the largest dams in our analysis, with high economic and political interests at stake built under both autocratic and democratic regimes, despite the presence of what we categorized as effective forms of public opposition to the project and resettlement process. We discuss features that make large hydroelectric dams less participatory or inherently undemocratic in the Global South.

Measuring progress in megawatt: Colonialism, development, and the “unseeing” electricity grid in East Africa

The electrification of East Africa followed an exceptionally uneven path. After about 50 years of relative neglect under colonial rule, the construction of hydroelectric dams moved electricity generation into the focus of late colonial development policy and became the major field of intervention for foreign donors after independence. The metrics of electricity attained a role as indicator and driver for economic growth, and therefore as a target figure in economic policy, one that was arguably not justified by their actual significance in the energy landscape of East Africa. This paper analyses both the global preconditions of this shift and its local repercussions. Rather than the physical visibility of electricity in the form of large dams and high-tension lines, the paper focuses on the processes that rendered electricity ontologically visible. It traces attempts by engineers, expert advisors, or development consultants to translate the complex information associated with the generation and consumption of electricity into calculable and comparable metrics. The paper scrutinises these commensuration processes in terms of the resources and knowledge they required, the frameworks of agency they opened, and the way they fed into wider discourses of development. It asks how the metrics of electricity themselves became part of the colonial and postcolonial politics of calculation, as they increasingly came to be seen as a medium for conceiving national economies. This trend was reinforced by the ascent of development economics in the 1950s and its influence on the ontological foundations of international development cooperation and post-independence nation-building. Because of the calculability and capital-intensity of its production, electricity lent itself perfectly to an economic policy based on macroeconomic aggregates and abstract growth models. Conversely, the electricity bias of international development agencies and the national government rendered rural, non-commercial, and non-productive energy use largely invisible.

Genetic differentiation and gene flow of the Amazonian catfish Pseudoplatystoma punctifer across the Madeira River rapids prior to the construction of hydroelectric dams

Genetic differentiation and gene flow of the Amazonian catfish Pseudoplatystoma punctifer across the Madeira River rapids prior to the construction of hydroelectric dams

Monitoring a critical population of the Bolivian river dolphin, Inia boliviensis, before and after closing the floodgates of a hydroelectric dam in the Amazon Basin, Brazil: A quantitative analysis

Dam constructions threaten aquatic fauna, degrading their habitats and causing population fragmentation. Environmental impact studies were carried out from March 2010 to July 2015 as part of the licensing process concerning the Jirau Hydroelectric Dam construction, located on the Madeira River, Rondônia, Brazil, aiming to assess its impacts on the local fauna. The dam closed its gates in December 2012 and the water level rose from 2013 to 2015, creating a 468 km2 reservoir. Dams may be a source of negative effects to several species, including the Bolivian river dolphin, Inia boliviensis, which have a restricted distribution in northern Bolivian rivers and part of the Madeira River Basin. This study evaluated the presence of I. boliviensis in different sections of the Madeira River before reservoir filling (BRF) and after reservoir filling (ARF) through a quantitative analysis. Dolphins were actively searched along linear transects in four sections of the river: Abunã, Mutum, Caiçara and Canteiro, over 125 km (250 km round trip). A total effort of 986 h was carried out along 210 days during the hydrological seasons (falling, low, rising and high-water level). Twenty-nine (29) groups were recorded BRF in the direct dam influence area (N = 62), while thirty-eight (38) groups were documented ARF (N = 111). The highest number of sightings was recorded in Abunã during both periods: 24 in BRF (N = 50) and 33 in ARF (N = 101). The greatest number of dolphins was detected during the falling and low hydrological seasons: 19 in BRF (N = 48) and 30 in ARF (N = 92). This is expected, since decreasing water levels lead to a higher concentration of prey and, consequently, higher numbers of dolphins can be observed. Standardized methodology and experienced staff are essential to ensure adequate dolphin population estimates, especially in these critical habitats, where the main impacts caused by the dam are population fragmentation, isolation and extirpation, and reproductive segregation.

Demography and electrical energy in the economy of large Cameroonian cities

This article shows that Cameroon remains the second hydroelectric potential of Africa after the Democratic Republic of Congo. Started in the 1950s and developed in 2001 by the national policy, strategy and action plan for energy efficiency in the electricity sector in Cameroon with the construction of hydroelectric dams and thermal power plants, the result of this policy Slow is the persistence of difficulties in supplying electrical energy, which leads to continuous load shedding on the one hand, and the limits linked to supplies in a context of increasing urbanization (2.5%) on the other. Although the correlation between population growth and energy consumption remains present for economic growth in cities, the rate of GDP is 5.77% and remains constant among other things, from the energy crisis in all cities of the country.

Itineraries of Expertise: Science, Technology, and the Environment in Latin America's Long Cold War

This volume makes a compelling case for centering circuits of experts and expertise in understanding Latin America's Cold War. Born out of a conference at Yale University in 2016, it follows the transnational trajectories of scientific, technological, and environmental experts during Latin America's “long Cold War,” shedding light on this crucial period beyond traditional Cold War narratives as well as contributing to histories of Latin American science, technology, and the environment.A lucid editors' introduction, an essay by Gilbert Joseph on the sea change in literature on Latin America's Cold War, and a conclusion by Eden Medina and Mark Carey on environment, technology, and science provide a comprehensive vision of the volume's stakes and contributions. The 11 historical chapters are organized into four, roughly chronological sections and cover diverse scientific and technological fields and projects, intersecting to varying degrees with histories of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Peru, and Puerto Rico from approximately the 1920s to the present.By tracing out the paths of experts in the production and circulation of expertise, these authors critique seemingly intransigent assumptions about the place of science, technology, and the environment in Latin America. While Latin American countries often have been seen as recipients of expertise from the United States and Western Europe, the authors of this volume challenge the directionality and place of expert circulation and knowledge production, as Thomas Rath does in his essay on the impact of Mexican responses to foot-and-mouth disease eradication programs on laboratory science and epizootic policies in Brazil, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Attentiveness to the local production of knowledge also reveals the place of Latin American experts in development projects like the Green Revolution, illustrated by Timothy Lorek's agronomists in Colombia's Cauca Valley. Scholars in this volume better locate this production in diverse inter-American exchanges, such as the “transnational contact zone” of the Inter-American Housing and Planning Center featured in Mark Healey's chapter (p. 200). Further demonstrating the multidirectional flows of Cold War expertise and expert politicking, Mary Roldán's chapter on education expertise illustrates the power of one expert's varied anticommunist discourse to marshal resources from across the hemisphere for his radiophonic schools.If the term Cold War suggests a bipolar world, this volume shows how experts, often because of their expertise, could forge unexpected connections across such geopolitical rigidity, as illustrated in Reinaldo Funes-Monzote and Steven Palmer's essay on the history of Cuban-Canadian cooperation on cattle breeding and in Andra Chastain's chapter on Chilean and French expertise in the construction of the Santiago metro and the role that it played in shaping political debates in Santiago and advancing French diplomatic aspirations. Opening up Cold War bipolarity also decouples scientific expertise from state dominance, seen in Emily Wakild's chapter on natural field scientists' resistance to developmentalism in the “middle landscapes” of the Peruvian Amazon and in Javiera Barandiarán's history of the privatization of Chilean environmental scientific expertise during the late twentieth century's neoliberal reforms (p. 262).Attentive to the porousness of the divide between cultural and political spheres and between scientific and technological ones, authors in this volume highlight entanglements of nonexpert culture and politics with scientific and technological projects, as demonstrated by Pedro Ignacio Alonso and Hugo Palmarola in their excavation of how the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's insignia design projected the scientific meaning of its satellite networks in Chile and by Fernando Purcell in his examination of the “concrete revolution” across South America and the necessity of crafting a popular imaginary for something as immaterial as electricity in order to support the construction of massive concrete hydroelectric dams (p. 222). Contributors also illustrate the political mutability of scientific knowledge and technological projects, made clear in Tore Olsson's unpacking of the Tennessee Valley Authority's power as an “idea” for both Left and Right in postrevolutionary Mexico (p. 75).Contributors to this volume do an excellent job of showing how a hemispheric program materialized out of transnational exchanges of expertise situated in local and national contexts; by doing so they advance scholarly agendas to construct a Latin American Cold War and to integrate histories of science, technology, and the environment. For this reviewer, the volume's successes gesture toward a need to reevaluate further how much the Cold War as a dominant historiographical concept explains and how much it obscures, particularly with regard to development as a response to structural phenomena and the continuities in transnational, inter-American scientific and technological networks from the nineteenth century onward. Ultimately, Latin Americanists working on different time periods will find this volume generative; scholars of science, technology, and the environment working on different geographical fields will recognize its contributions; and advanced undergraduates will find its essays stimulating.

Community re‐assembly and divergence of woody plant traits in an island–mainland system after more than 50 years of regeneration

AbstractAimUnderstanding long‐term community assembly trajectories following habitat fragmentation remains a major challenge. Varying time since disturbance and heterogeneous initial starting conditions confound real‐world comparisons of re‐assembly trajectories in fragmented versus intact systems. Here, we overcome these issues in a novel manner using a system of islands and adjacent mainland habitats with common initial starting conditions following clear‐felling of forests during hydroelectric dam construction in 1959. Fifty years after resetting ‘future‐islands’ and ‘future‐mainland sites’ to common initial starting conditions, we determine the outcome of re‐assembly trajectories in plant taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional trait composition, and how these have diverged between islands versus continuous mainland habitats.LocationThousand Island Lake, China.MethodsWe surveyed woody plant communities on 26 islands and 26 adjacent mainland plots, and characterized 12 functional traits for 91 woody plant species (>46,000 total stems with DBH ≥1 cm). We used variance partitioning analysis to discriminate major environmental and spatial drivers of compositional differences, and generalised linear models to test trait and phylogenetic responses to underlying environmental gradients in island versus mainland plots.ResultsWe found striking differences in species composition between island and mainland plots. Variance partitioning showed that species composition on islands was governed by local environmental variables, suggesting an important role for environmental filtering, while compositional variation across mainland plots was determined by spatial variables. Ten of 12 functional traits showed significant divergence in community‐weighted mean values between island and mainland plots. Moreover, most traits exhibited significant interaction effects between isolation (island versus mainland) and underlying environmental gradients in soil fertility and stress tolerance.Main conclusionThese findings strongly suggest divergence in trait–environment relationships following isolation in fragmented habitats, with important implications for understanding future re‐assembly trajectories in fragmented systems that now dominate the planet.

Assessing changes of carbon stock in dipterocarp forest due to hydro-electric dam construction in Malaysia.

Deforestation and forest degradation are among the leading global concerns, as they could reduce the carbon sink and sequestration potential of the forest. The impoundment of Kenyir River, Hulu Terengganu, Malaysia, in 1985 due to the development of hydropower station has created a large area of water bodies following clearance of forested land. This study assessed the loss of forest carbon due to these activities within the period of 37 years, between 1972 and 2019. The study area consisted of Kenyir Lake catchment area, which consisted mainly of forests and the great Kenyir Lake. Remote sensing datasets have been used in this analysis. Satellite images from Landsat 1-5 MSS and Landsat 8 OLI/TRIS that were acquired between the years 1972 and 2019 were used to classify land uses in the entire landscape of Kenyir Lake catchment. Support vector machine (SVM) was adapted to generate the land-use classification map in the study area. The results show that the total study area includes 278,179 ha and forest covers dominated the area for before and after the impoundment of Kenyir Lake. The assessed loss of carbon between the years 1972 and 2019 was around 8.6 million Mg C with an annual rate of 0.36%. The main single cause attributing to the forest loss was due to clearing of forest for hydro-electric dam construction. However, the remaining forests surrounding the study area are still able to sequester carbon at a considerable rate and thus balance the carbon dynamics within the landscapes. The results highlight that carbon sequestration scenario in Kenyir Lake catchment area shows the potential of the carbon sink in the study area are acceptable with only 17% reduction of sequestration ability. The landscape of the study area is considered as highly vegetated area despite changes due to dam construction.

Spatio-temporal analysis of land use/land cover change through overlay technique in Kinnaur district of Himachal pradesh, Western Himalaya

In the modern era of globalisation demand of natural resources is very high for the well-being of human; high demand results in the degradation of natural resources, uneven pattern of development and changes in naturally available resources. Changes in land use land cover (LULC) is a dynamic process, which varies with time and space. It is the main component in the planning and management of natural resources, and analysing the changes in the environment. There are many remote sensing and GIS-based model used by the researcher in the world to identify the land use pattern. Here, Digital change detection model is used to determine the changes in Land use and Land cover with geo-referenced multi-temporal remote sensing data. This present study is an attempt to identify the spatial-temporal variation of LULC in the Kinnaur district of Himachal Pradesh, based on the secondary data. Landsat imageries are collected from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) for a different period like Landsat TM, Landsat ETM +, and Landsat OLI. Kinnaur district has witnessed many hydro-electric power projects, dam, tunnel and road construction, which has changed the pattern of land use in a few decades. It is indispensable to have a sustainable development mechanism for the fragile ecosystem. It includes the initiative of local government and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), government agencies and global partners to improve the degraded land condition.Keywords: Natural Resources, Land Use/ Land Cover, Kinnaur, Hydro-electric Power Projects.

Seasonal Variation in Trophic Diversity and Relative Importance of Basal Resources Supporting Tropical River Fish Assemblages in Chiapas, Mexico

AbstractEnvironmental changes caused by hydrological shifts between wet and dry seasons in the tropics drive variation in resource availability and feeding interactions for riverine fish assemblages, but studies of trophic structure typically take place over short time scales that do not adequately capture this variation. In this study, we used analysis of stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) to assess seasonal changes in the diversity and relative importance of production sources supporting fish assemblages in La Venta River, the largest tributary of Netzahualcoyotl Reservoir on the Grijalva River in Chiapas, Mexico. Based on established river ecosystem theories, we expected the relative importance of carbon sources supporting fishes to shift seasonally, with greater use of instream resources during low‐water periods and an increasing contribution from terrestrial sources during high‐water periods. Abundant, low‐trophic‐level food resources (i.e., plants and invertebrates) were expected to support most fish species in the wet season, whereas piscivory was predicted to increase as habitat volume declined and fish density increased in the dry season. Somewhat surprisingly, we found that terrestrial energy sources were assimilated more during low‐water conditions at some sites, and ranges of δ13C were higher in the dry season. Terrestrial carbon supporting fish production in low‐water periods likely came from riparian plant detritus that remained in the river after flows receded and/or leaf litter that accumulated in the dry season. Ranges of δ15N were similar across seasons, with no apparent increase in piscivory during the dry season. Higher trophic redundancy was observed in the wet season, likely due to fish taking advantage of the same readily available food items (e.g., pulses of arthropod prey) during high flows. Documenting seasonal use of trophic resources provides critical information as expanding hydroelectric dam construction threatens the natural variability of energy pathways that support fisheries resources in tropical rivers.

A new species of Pheraeus Godman, 1900 (Hesperiidae, Hesperiini, Moncina) restricted to Rio Doce Valley, Brazil.

A new species of Pheraeus Godman, 1900, P. guandu Saraiva, Carneiro, Mielke Casagrande sp. nov., restricted to the Rio Doce Valley (Espírito Santo and Minas Gerais, southeast Brazil) is described. Adults of the new species are illustrated and compared with phenotypically closest species, Pheraeus argynnis (Plötz, 1884), together with the diagnostic characters present in the male and female genitalia. This new species is here solely described because it is known to occur in a restricted region crossed by the Rio Doce. This region has been extensively transformed in recent decades by agriculture, livestock, construction of hydroelectric and tailing dams, and more recently by a dam failure, thus potentially impacting the habitat of this species.

The genetic structure of Pristimantis latro (Anura: Craugastoridae) mirrors traits of their life history

One of the main hypotheses to explain the origin of Amazonian diversity is the barrier effect of the rivers known as the riverine-barrier hypothesis, which suggests that riverine barriers isolated once continuous populations leading to differentiation and speciation. In this context, we studied the genetic structure of Pristimantis latro, a newly described species that inhabits a region under marked anthropic pressure due to expansive livestock, illegal mining, and hydroelectric dam construction. The DNA was extracted from 52 P. latro individuals and then amplified via polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using the mitochondrial 16S rRNA and COI markers. To infer the time of divergence between the P. latro localities, we built a species tree and performed an analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) to infer the genetic differentiation between and within the P. latro populations. We found that P. latro has a marked genetic structure in the populations of the right and left margins of the Xingu River and within the Tapajós-Xingu and Xingu-Tocantins interfluvial regions and that the time of divergence between the populations of the East and West banks of the Xingu River occurred approximately 380,000 years ago. This pattern of genetic structure corresponds to that reported in recent articles for the Pristimantis genus evidencing that species without tadpoles exhibit a genetic structure explained by the hypothesis of rivers as barriers.

Becoming indigenous or being overcome? Strategic indigenous rights litigation in the Sudan

ABSTRACT In the name of development, water management, and economic growth, the government of Sudan has made the construction of hydroelectric dams a national priority. In the case of the Merowe Dam, it is estimated that around 60,000 people have been affected by the government’s hydropower programmes, including loss of land, livelihood, and even life. These struggles have led to a number of litigation efforts, using both national and international judicial bodies. From a research perspective, this unfolding struggle provides a unique opportunity to follow both the trajectory and impact of norms. Do international norms travel locally to support the struggle? Do domestic norms, perhaps newly established, drive the struggle on the international stage? This paper studies a particular set of international norms around indigenous rights and their role in the struggle. Although only one local population of the several affected is technically classed as indigenous, other non-indigenous groups are using the indigenous rights framework in seeking justice, contributing to the strategic regional movement to extend these rights and develop African jurisprudence. This paper explores whether this is evidence of groups ‘becoming indigenous’ in order to access justice or whether this is an example of organisations directing, or perhaps even overpowering, vulnerable communities.

Impact of land use changes on forest catchment area in Pergau Lake, Kelantan

The Pergau lake basin is a man-made water catchment area comprise of 460 hectares due to the construction of hydroelectric dams in Pergau. It is located about 125 km southwest of Kota Bharu in the Jeli district in Kelantan and managed by Tenaga Nasional Berhad. The lake is rich in natural resources and the forest in the basin acts as a reservoir through water absorption and storage. Forests within the area catchments and basins can control soil erosion and erosion of river banks as well slope collapse is one of the sources of risk floods in terms of damage to property and infrastructure such as bridges and road. However, rapid population growth and urbanisation induced the pressure from human activities have been expanded into the forest catchment area. Therefore this study was conducted in the Pergau Lake (Dam) to safeguard their importance for socio-economic, well-being, ecotourism potential and sustaining its biodiversity. This study aims to predict the land use changes in the study area for 2035, parameterised with satellite images in 1988, 2003 and 2018 and the physical parameter such as slope, road, elevation, distance from built up area, green space edge and waterbody. The integrated approach of remote sensing, Geographical Information System (GIS) and Land Change Modeler-Markov Change Model were used to analyze the changes and their spatial pattern. The results showed that between 1994 and 2004, and between 2004 and 2014 the forest landscape in the Pergau Lake were decreased due to the development of the built-up area. Thus, the results will hopefully take into consideration for land use planning and forest protection for sustainable management planning of the forest catchment area. It is indicated that the spatial effect of green space is influenced by the historical spatial changes, implementation of the previous master planning efforts and uncontrolled land use expansion. This study is designed to provide the novel integrated approach for predicting landscape changes for the forest catchment area to provide the initial guideline for sustainable planning and management of forest catchment area.