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Dams contribute to droughts by limiting the recharge of downstream ground water levels and aquifiers.

• _ph_ 10y ago
  Can you explain why? Over the year they would release the same water as the river without the dam would do - just not in a peak flood but reduced to a constant flood rate.
  • sedachv 10y ago
    Dammed rivers release less water because of increased evaporation. Another problem is riverbed deepening which lowers the groundwater table. Where the water pools up is also important - having a bunch behind a dam when former wetlands and floodplains are dry is obviously not conducive to the ecosystems in those wetlands and floodplains.
    • _ph_ 10y ago
      Doesn't that all very heavily depend on the exact nature of the system the dam is part of? We all know of the environmental problems of the Assuan dam in Egypt. But that does not mean that properly planned dam cannot be very beneficial. One shouldn't just build a dam where it is convenient but with careful analysis first. There are plenty of places where a dam just means less cities flooded occasionally but otherwise has little eco system impact.
    • adrianN 10y ago
      Why do dams increase evaporation? Having the water all in one place as opposed to distributed over the length of a river should reduce surface area.