Projects by Discipline / Environmental Science

Bhutan Power Master Plan and Hydropower Feasibility Studies

The Royal Government of Bhutan is investigating hydropower development possibilities with financial and technical assistance from the World Bank, the Kingdom of Norway and the United Nations Development Program. Hydrosphere was retained by Norconsult International A/S, the prime consultant for planning and design, to coordinate and manage the environmental impact studies and evaluation.

Hydrosphere has completed a study of the environmental and social consequences of all the alternative project proposals. In addition, we have been responsible for identification of critical habitat, threatened and endangered species, and fisheries and wetlands issues that could arise from hydropower development at four potential hydropower sites. The assignment involved considerable field work in Bhutan.

• The hydropower development investigation involves work at several levels:

• Reconnaissance of all Bhutanese river systems using remote sensing and field visits
• Establishment of a hydrometeorological data collection network and data management system
• Initial identification of potential hydropower development possibilities and investigations at the prefeasibility level
• Feasibility studies to develop further information on the technical, economic, sociological, and environmental aspects of both system-wide and project-level consequences