There are several benefits to the use of hydropower. Hydropower has a moderate to high amount of useful energy and fairly low operating and maintenance costs. Hydroelectric power plants emit very little heat-trapping carbon dioxide and other air pollutants during operation. They have live spans of two to ten times those of coal and nuclear plants.
The dams that are used in the power plants help prevent flooding and supply a regulated flow of irrigation water to the areas below the dam.
However, there are some drawbacks to the use of hydroelectric power. A hydroelectric power plant takes up a lot of space and this may cause animal habitats to go lost. Large-scale projects can threaten recreational activities and disrupt the flows of rivers. Due to the presence of dams and reservoirs, fish may not be able to swim to sea and aquatic life may decrease in the area of the hydroelectric power plant.