Once you've committed to a dam, much of the environmental damage is baked in, whether small or large. And dams have huge environmental impacts across the entir

Once you've committed to a dam, much of the environmental damage is baked in, whether small or large. And dams have huge environmental impacts across the entire river system. They still have their place. There is a pumped hydro system here in the Bay Area (San Luis Reservoir) that is coupled to a hydro station, and produces power when it drains back in to the aqueducts. It's primary purpose is water capture and distribution, not power storage, but it does both.