A contested resource

The Gibe III Dam on the Omo River in Ethiopia (2016) (Photograph: Wikimedia Commons / Mimi Abebayehu) - The expansion of hydropower generation often leads to conflicts of interest, both in Switzerland and beyond. Researchers from ETH Zurich are trying to find a basis for compromise that serves the public interest. Without hydroelectric power, Switzerland would be a shadow of what it is today. The country generates some 60 percent of its electricity from a nationwide network of 1,500 run-of-river and storage hydropower plants - and their importance is only going to grow. "By 2050, electricity will make up between 38 and 46 percent of Switzerland's energy mix, which is a considerable jump from today's figure of 27 percent," says Robert Boes, Professor of Hydraulic Engineering at ETH Zurich. That's because a successful transition to renewables means replacing fossil fuels and electrifying more energy uses such as private transport. At the same time, Switzerland's last nuclear power plant is due to shut down in about ten years - so solar, wind and hydro will have to pick up the slack.