Spatiotemporal analysis of hydropower projects with terrestrial environmentally sensitive areas of Nepal

Hydropower project construction is increasing, which can affect the terrestrial environment. Hydropower projects located in environmentally sensitive areas have higher environmental impacts, so we analyzed the spatiotemporal interaction between hydropower project locations and terrestrial environmentally sensitive areas of Nepal to visualize the probable environmental impacts. Most existing projects lie on the Hills (Middle Mountains); however, future projects are moving northward toward the Himalayas. Among the 12 eco-regions of Nepal, hydropower projects are located in 10 eco-regions. Hydropower projects were found to interact with more than half of the biodiverse areas of the country (28 out of 45), and more than five thousand megawatts of hydropower projects are located completely inside these biodiverse areas. The study suggests that the interaction between hydropower projects and environmentally sensitive areas might increase in the future. Hydropower projects should avoid environmentally sensitive areas such as biodiverse areas and protected areas as much as possible to minimize the impacts. Rapid hydropower development is necessary for countries such as Nepal, so further studies on the effects of hydropower projects on environmentally sensitive areas as well as improvement of the quality of the environmental assessment of the projects are necessary for environmentally friendly development.