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Analysis of TV news on how they dealt with blackouts and its relation to energy supply shortages 

Large hydropower dams and plants have been an engineering feat and a source of national pride in both the Global North and South. They were promoted as a source of clean energy almost unquestionably until the environmental awakening of the 60’s. Since then, the growing number of documented socioenvironmental impacts caused by large dams have put this energy source under scrutiny. Nevertheless, dam builders continue to promote this solution based on outdated arguments and unfulfilled promises connected to the creation of jobs, stimulation of the regional economy by the production of vast amounts of cheap electricity, improvement of local water quality and infrastructure, amongst others. Considering that most of the large dams currently planned or under construction are situated in socioenvironmentally sensitive areas, such as the Amazon, which conservation is of high importance for reaching of climate goals, this paper deconstructs myths created by dam boosters in order to reach the conclusion that large dams should not be built in the Amazon (or anywhere else). 

Large hydropower projects continue to be built in developing nations, despite their known negative impacts. Large-scale energy projects strain local infrastructure and reduce access to infrastructure for households that live near them. Here we investigate the link between large-scale hydropower projects and stress. Our results suggest that these projects create stress through two mechanisms: strains on community resources and through the process of displacement. We also ask how compensation and resettlement programs condition these relationships. Using data from the Madeira river basin in the Brazilian Amazon, we find that hydropower projects increase stress by reducing access to energy, water, sanitation and land. Compensation provided was not sufficient to moderate this effect.