Irrespective of the strategic suitability of projects for development, the role of the Master Plan is limited to the overarching, policy, planning and programming level; its task is not to identify the environmental and social impacts of proposed energy projects prior to decision-making, which requires the preparation of an Environmental Impact Assessment. Recent environmental controversies concerning energy projects in Iceland have appeared to highlight the limitations of EIA's in terms of their capacity to influence decision-making (Thórhallsdóttir, 2007b) – for example, particularly heated debate ensued concerning the environmental impacts of the 690 MW Kárahnjúkar Hydropower Plant in eastern Iceland, the largest such project in Iceland and used since 2007 to generate electricity for Alcoa's Fjardaál aluminium smelter in Reyðarfjördur. These impacts were predicted to be long-lasting and severe, diminishing both the landscape value of the area and biodiversity. They included permanent negative impacts to rare wildlife populations that were inhabiting, breeding and nesting in the affected area (particularly reindeer, pink-footed geese and harbour seals); widespread soil erosion; considerable hydrological changes leading to a reduction in groundwater flows and the creation of the Hálslón reservoir, which would destroy a rare highland vegetative area with considerable conservation value; and fragmentation and disruption of one of the last remaining wilderness areas in Europe, including the loss of one of Iceland's most well-known glacial canyons, Dimmugljúfur