Matthew McCartney, Jonathan Lautze and Solomon Kibret
Thanks for the feedback on our article. We agree with you that development and poverty alleviation contribute to malaria reduction. Indeed the development benefits of dams are recognized in our work. Nonetheless, there is ample evidence that dams built in malarious regions often result in increased malaria in the communities living in the vicinity of the reservoir. Our research confirmed this reality and, for the first time, determined a cumulative number of cases associated with large dams in sub-Saharan Africa. To be clear, the number of cases we quote (1.1 million) is not the total number of cases in the vicinity of dams; rather, it is the total number of cases around dams over and above those which would otherwise have occurred. In the paper, and indeed in this blog, we have been careful to put this in the context of the total number of cases annually in sub Saharan Africa (174 million) and also point out that, in addition to dams, there are many other anthropogenic activities (e.g. irrigation) that provide mosquito breeding habitat. We fully recognize the value of dams for socio-economic development. Nonetheless, we disagree with the assertion that if benefits outweigh costs, then costs should be overlooked. On the contrary, the greater the benefits that are derived from dams, the greater the reason to mitigate the adverse impacts.
Thanks for the feedback on our article. We agree with you that development and poverty alleviation contribute to malaria reduction. Indeed the development benefits of dams are recognized in our work. Nonetheless, there is ample evidence that dams built in malarious regions often result in increased malaria in the communities living in the vicinity of the reservoir. Our research confirmed this reality and, for the first time, determined a cumulative number of cases associated with large dams in sub-Saharan Africa. To be clear, the number of cases we quote (1.1 million) is not the total number of cases in the vicinity of dams; rather, it is the total number of cases around dams over and above those which would otherwise have occurred. In the paper, and indeed in this blog, we have been careful to put this in the context of the total number of cases annually in sub Saharan Africa (174 million) and also point out that, in addition to dams, there are many other anthropogenic activities (e.g. irrigation) that provide mosquito breeding habitat. We fully recognize the value of dams for socio-economic development. Nonetheless, we disagree with the assertion that if benefits outweigh costs, then costs should be overlooked. On the contrary, the greater the benefits that are derived from dams, the greater the reason to mitigate the adverse impacts.