Mountain Adaptation Outlook Series - Synthesis Report

Infrastructure and energy

Climate impacts Despite the remoteness and high construction costs in mountain areas, there is increasing infrastructural development.This includes buildings, roads, rail networks, water pipelines, electrical grids, communication systems and other infrastructure needed for society to function. Much of this infrastructure is located within urban areas and settlements. Mountains also host industry, including extractive industries (mining) as well as renewable energy (mostly hydropower, but also wind and solar). In general, climate change is expected to increase the risk of infrastructure damage or failure in mountain areas. Much of this infrastructure is ageing and poorly maintained. It has also been designed for historical weather patterns, while it will be exposed to more frequent and/or severe climate-related hazards. Hydropower has significant potential in mountain regions due to the general abundance of water from rivers and glacier meltwater and large altitudinal

Mining is an important part of the economy and a driver for development in many mountain countries. However, mining activities are often harmful to the environment and compete for water with other sectors such as agriculture. Toxic mining waste is often stored in tailing ponds and dams and may collapse and cause severe pollution to downstreamareas.The risk is increased if the tailing dams are poorly constructed, not maintained, or exposed to climate hazards such as flooding. In the Western Balkans and South Caucasus, abandoned mining sites are a significant concern and some pose transboundary risks, while in the Tropical Andes, large-scale open pit mining threatens local water resources and livelihoods. Climate change-induced extreme events also threaten industrial plants, and oil and gas pipelines crossing mountainous terrain. Urbanisation trends vary across the regions. In the Carpathians, the urbanisation rate is relatively low. In

differences. However, the sector is also vulnerable to changes in precipitation, the provision of water from ecosystems, evaporation, glacial melting, river flow and extreme events. In general, all mountain regions have the potential to further develop their hydropower resources, particularly East Africa and Hindu Kush Himalaya which have large untapped potential. In general, locations that are expected to receive increased precipitation and river flow will see an increase in production; areas with reduced river flow and/or reduced precipitation are expected to see a decrease in production. For example, a study from Croatia predicts a decrease up to 15–35 per cent in a 4°C world, while in the Tropical Andes, north- western Peru, Ecuador and Colombia may see an increase in precipitation, which can increase their hydropower production potential. Many facilities are at risk of damage from flooding, including Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs). For example, in India, Bhutan and Nepal, 66 per cent of the 257 hydropower plants surveyed are currently at risk from a GLOF.

%

% OF POPULATION WITH ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY (2016)

100 75 50 25 0

*

CHINA

INDIA

PERU

10 100 TWh

NEPAL

MONTENEGRO SERBIA

KENYA

COLOMBIA

PAKISTAN

VENEZUELA

BANGLADESH BHUTAN

UKRAINE

BOSNIA HERZEGOVINA CROATIA FYROM

ECUADOR

BOLIVIA

GEORGIA

ROMANIA

POLAND

ALBANIA

ETHIOPIA

UGANDA

KOSOVO

ARMENIA

MYANMAR

SLOVAKIA

TAJIKISTAN

RWANDA

BURUNDI

TANZANIA

CZECH REPUBLIC HUNGARY

UZBEKISTAN

KYRGYZSTAN

KAZAKHSTAN

AZERBAIJAN

AFGHANISTAN

SOUTH SUDAN

TURKMENISTAN

REPUBLIC OF CONGO DEMOCRATIC

CARPATHIANS

CENTRAL ASIA

EAST AFRICA

HINDU KUSH HIMALAYA

SOUTH CAUCASUS

TROPICAL ANDES

WESTERN BALKANS

ELECTRICITY GENERATION FROM HYDROPOWER (2017)

Sources: IHP, World Bank.

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/99 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

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