Located in the remote Maguan County, Yunnan Province, China, this small scale 32 MW hydro power project delivers real benefits to the local community as well as significant greenhouse gas emission reductions. This project was the first hydro power CDM project to issue CERs. It generates over 156,000 MWh of electricity per annum and delivers emissions reductions of 97,667 tCO2e per annum through displacing principally coal fired power on the local power grid.Large scale hydro power projects can have negative social and environmental impacts from creating wide spread fresh water shortages to requiring the relocation of whole communities. Small scale hydro power, however, does not have any of these impacts and can provide a source of clean and reliable renewable energy, whilst directly contributing to the sustainable development of the local area.The Maguan project has created jobs and provided investment in local infrastructure by building an access road to serve the local community which, until now, has been inaccessible by road, preventing local industry development.The project has raised the quality of the local power supply and reduced pressure on local forests, by displacing wood as a fuel source and leading to an extensive replanting programme.The project was only made possible with CDM assistance, and Camco worked closely with Maguan Daliangzi Power Company Limited to attain the maximum amount of carbon financing for the project. This project highlights how the CDM can be used to achieve quantifiable emission reductions and fulfill sustainable development goals both economically and practically.