The outcome of the dam diverting vast amounts of water has negatively impacted communities downstream. Maga Dam is the subject of ongoing environmental studies which implicate the diversion of water, which served as natural inflow to downstream regions, as the primary cause of Lake Chad shrinkage.
The diversion of water from the dam has resulted in negative effects on local populations and triggered studies examining the causes, which suggest that the diversion is the main cause of Lake Chad's decline.