Hydropower and environmental regulation – A Scottish perspective

This paper provides an overview of hydropower and the environmental legislative and regulatory frameworks, with particular reference to Scotland. Consideration is given to the environmental impacts of hydro schemes, with case examples of particular relevance to birds used for illustration. Impacts vary from run of river schemes which tend to have the lowest impact on biodiversity, to large impoundment schemes which have the greatest impact. Adverse impacts can be minimized by sensitive site selection and good scheme design.