Dams and large scale irrigation on the Senegal River: impacts on man and the environment

Degeorges, Andre; Reilly, Brian K.

doi:10.1080/00207230600963296

Cited by 31 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…The Diama dam is situated on the SenegalMauritania border 27 km from the river estuary, and was designed to stop the salt water intrusion to the river during the dry season. The Manantali dam was constructed in Mali, about 1200 kilometers south-west of the river mouth, aimed to store the water from the Guinean confluents and ensure that the river maintains the desired level of water throughout the year (DeGeorges and Reilly, 2006). In addition to providing water for irrigation, the project generated 740 GWh.y −1 of electricity (KfW BEI AFD, 2009), and was designed to ensure the future navigability of the lower portion of the river and facilitate the development of the mining industry (OMVS, 2012).…”

Section: Historical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The flooded surfaces varied from 1 year to another according to the abundance of rains in the upper part of the Senegal River catchment. Between the 1946 and 1971, on average 65,000 ha per year of flooded plains were cultivated (DeGeorges and Reilly, 2006). After the Manantali dam's construction, the natural floods disappeared, but the opportunity to practice the recession agriculture on about 35,000 ha per year was maintained, thanks to the release of water from Manantali dam (OMVS, 2006).…”

Section: Recession Agriculturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to DeGeorges and Reilly (2006) the constructed dams and dikes reduced the S-SRV pasturelands from 80,000 to 4000 ha, which corresponds to the reduction of pasture feeding potential from 8928 to 446 tropical livestock units (TLU). The value of food provided by one TLU in semi-arid zones is about US$ 85.6 per year (FAO, 2007).…”

Section: Pasturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to DeGeorges and Reilly (2006), 8600 ha of forestlands were lost after the dams' construction. In Senegal, one hectare of forest produces approximately one ton of firewood per year (Hunter, 2012) of an average value of US$175.0, recalculated from Ndiaye (2001).…”

Section: Forested Surfacementioning

confidence: 99%

“…About 122,000 ha of wetlands were lost due to the absence and non-replacement of natural floods (recalculated from DeGeorges and Reilly, 2006). The benefit from one hectare of wetland in the S-SRV was estimated at US$17.8 per year (Ly and Zein, 2009).…”

Section: Loss Of Productive Wetlandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sustainability Assessment of Large Irrigation Dams in Senegal: A Cost-Benefit Analysis for the Senegal River Valley

Manikowski

Strapasson

2016

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Starting in the 1970s, the Senegalese Government invested in the development of irrigated schemes in the Senegalese part of the Senegal River Valley (S-SRV). From that time to 2012, the irrigated schemes increased from 10,000 to more than 110,000 ha. In the meantime, the economic viability of these schemes started to be questioned. It also appeared that the environmental health and social costs might outweigh the benefits of irrigation. Using a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach and project cost-benefits modeling, this study (i) quantified the costs and benefits of the S-SRV irrigated rice production, (ii) evaluated the costs and benefits of its externalities, and (iii) discussed the irrigated rice support policy. The net financial revenues from the irrigated schemes were positive, but not their economic equivalences. The economic return rate (EER) was below the expected 12% and the net present value (NPV) over 20 years of the project represented a loss of about US$-19.6 million. However, if we also include the project's negative externalities, such as the reduced productivity of the valley ecosystems, protection cost of human health, environmental degradation, and social impacts, then the NPV would be much worse, approximately US$-572.1 million. Therefore, the results show that to stop the economic loss and alleviate the human suffering, the S-SRV development policy should be revised using an integrated approach and the exploitation technology should aim at environmental sustainability. This paper may offer useful insights for reviewing the current Senegalese policies for the valley, as well as for assessing other similar cases or future projects worldwide, particularly in critical zones of developing countries.

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Section: Historical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Recession Agriculturementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Pasturesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Forested Surfacementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Loss Of Productive Wetlandsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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