Hydropower in Norway. An overview of key tools for planning, licensing, environmental impacts and mitigation measures

Summary

The report deals with HP management issues in Norway to provide a basis for exchange of experiences. The focus and level of detail in the report is based on dialogue with the Bulgarian partners to ensure relevance. The applicability of the studied practices should be closely examined and adaptation must take the national specifics into consideration for adoption in Bulgaria. The HP developments in Norway is largely dependent on country-specific favorable natural conditions and the transferal of experience to countries with different natural, social and economic context must be handled carefully. However, certain approaches and principles of sustainable HP development in Norway are generally valid and could be useful as references. In particular we assume that the processes and the approaches of some framework plans, and the licensing systems are of particular relevance. Particularly the integration in time and place of the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and the extensive revision of licenses for older HP plants are relevant information. The environmental/ecological criteria related to HP development vary over time and with the type of management tool, and is to a great extent related to water management priorities. A national approach is recommended for Bulgaria, taking into account the environmental objectives for the rivers, set by WFD and other regulatory documents. Currently in Norway the most important mitigation measures include demand for environmental flow or minimum flow, restrictions on regulation heights of dams, release of fish, fish passes in Power station, construction of thresholds and habitat adjustments. The general approach of selection and implementation of the mitigation measures is applicable outside Norway, bu the design of measures must be adapted to the specific habitat and species needs