The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is supposed to catalyze climate-friendly projects in low-income countries by allowing developers to generate revenue by selling "carbon credits" or "offsets." The offset buyers - industrialized country companies and governments - use the credits to show compliance with Kyoto Protocol-mandated emissions reductions. Because of the CDM's structural flaws and cheating by project developers, billions of dollars worth of credits are being sold by projects that never needed assistance from the CDM to be built. In the short-term the CDM must be radically improved; beyond 2012 its goal of providing finance for clean development in developing countries should be met through fund-based rather than offsets-based approaches.

International Rivers' third annual "Dams, Rivers & People" report explains the failure of the world's biggest carbon offsets program to make a dent in greenhouse-gas emissions. It also maps the world of rivers and dams for the past year and pinpoints hotspots for the coming year.

Frequently Asked Questions: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Dams

Q: What is the contribution of dams to global warming?

According to the most detailed estimate available, done by Ivan Lima and colleagues from Brazil's National Institute for Space Research (INPE), the world's large dams emit 104 million metric tonnes o

This op-ed first appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, November 17, 2006

It comes as a surprise to most people, but the reservoirs behind the world’s dams are likely a major source of global warming pollution. In the case of big reservoirs in the tropics -- where most new dams are proposed -- hydropower can actually emit more greenhouse gases per kilowatt-hour than fossil fuels, including dirty coal.

As the World Bank unveiled its new Investment Framework on Clean Energy and Development at its annual meeting in Singapore in September 2006, a coalition of environment and development organizations charge that the strategy will not be effective at combating climate change and expanding energy access for the poor.