Hydroelectricity is electricity generated by
hydropower, i.e., the production of power
through use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water.
It is the most widely used form of
renewable energy. Once a hydroelectric
complex is constructed, the project produces no direct waste, and
has a considerably lower output level of the
greenhouse gas carbon dioxide ( ) than
fossil fuel powered energy plants. Worldwide, an
installed capacity of 777
GWe supplied 2998 TWh
of hydroelectricity in 2006. This was approximately 20% of the
world's electricity, and accounted for about 88% of electricity
from renewable sources.
Electricity generation
Hydroelectric dam in cross
section
Most hydroelectric power comes from the
potential energy of
dammed water driving a water turbine and
generator. In this case the energy
extracted from the water depends on the volume and on the
difference in height between the source and the water's outflow.
This height difference is called the
head. The amount of
potential energy in water is proportional
to the head. To obtain very high head, water for a hydraulic
turbine may be run through a large pipe called a
penstock.
Pumped storage
hydroelectricity produces electricity to supply high peak
demands by moving water between
reservoirs at different elevations. At
times of low electrical demand, excess generation capacity is used
to pump water into the higher reservoir. When there is higher
demand, water is released back into the lower reservoir through a
turbine. Pumped storage schemes currently provide the only
commercially important means of large-scale
grid energy storage and improve the
daily
capacity factor of the
generation system. Hydroelectric plants with no reservoir capacity
are called
run-of-the-river plants,
since it is not then possible to store water. A
tidal power plant makes use of the daily rise
and fall of water due to tides; such sources are highly
predictable, and if conditions permit construction of reservoirs,
can also be
dispatchable to
generate power during high demand periods.
Less common types of hydro schemes use water's
kinetic energy or undammed sources such as
undershot
waterwheels.
Calculating the amount of available power
A simple formula for approximating electric power production at a
hydroelectric plant is: P = \rho hrgk ,where P is Power in watts,
\rho is the density of water (~1000 kg/m
3), h is height
in meters, r is flow rate in cubic meters per second, g is
acceleration due to
gravity of 9.8
m/s
2, and k is a coefficient of efficiency ranging from
0 to 1. Efficiency is often higher (that is, closer to 1) with
larger and more modern turbines.
Annual electric energy production depends on the available water
supply. In some installations the water flow rate can vary by a
factor of 10:1 over the course of a year.
Industrial hydroelectric plants
While many hydroelectric projects supply public electricity
networks, some are created to serve specific
industrial enterprises. Dedicated hydroelectric
projects are often built to provide the substantial amounts of
electricity needed for
aluminium
electrolytic plants, for example.
In the Scottish Highlands of United Kingdom
, there are examples at Kinlochleven
and Lochaber, constructed
during the early years of the 20th century. The Grand Coulee
Dam
, long the world's largest, switched to support
Alcoa aluminum in Bellingham,
Washington
, United
States
for American World War
II airplanes before it was allowed to provide irrigation and
power to citizens (in addition to aluminum power) after the
war. In Suriname
, the
Brokopondo
Reservoir
was constructed to provide electricity for the
Alcoa aluminium industry. New Zealand's
Manapouri Power Station
was constructed to supply electricity to the
aluminium smelter
at Tiwai Point. As of 2007 the
Kárahnjúkar Hydropower Project
in Iceland
remains
controversial.
Small-scale hydro-electric plants
Although large hydroelectric installations generate most of the
world's hydroelectricity, some situations require small hydro
plants. These are defined as plants producing up to 10 megawatts,
or projects up to 30 megawatts in North America. A small hydro
plant may be connected to a distribution grid or may provide power
only to an isolated community or a single home. Small hydro
projects generally do not require the protracted economic,
engineering and environmental studies associated with large
projects, and often can be completed much more quickly. A small
hydro development may be installed along with a project for flood
control, irrigation or other purposes, providing extra revenue for
project costs. In areas that formerly used waterwheels for milling
and other purposes, often the site can be redeveloped for electric
power production, possibly eliminating the new environmental impact
of any demolition operation. Small hydro can be further divided
into mini-hydro, units around 1 MW in size, and
micro hydro with units as large as 100 kW
down to a couple of kW rating.
Small
hydro schemes are particularly popular in China
, which has over 50% of world small hydro
capacity.
Small hydro units in the range 1 MW to about 30 MW are often
available from multiple manufacturers using standardized "water to
wire" packages; a single contractor can provide all the major
mechanical and electrical equipment (turbine, generator, controls,
switchgear), selecting from several standard designs to fit the
site conditions. Micro hydro projects use a diverse range of
equipment; in the smaller sizes industrial centrifugal pumps can be
used as turbines, with comparatively low purchase cost compared to
purpose-built turbines.
Advantages
Economics
The major advantage of hydroelectricity is elimination of the cost
of fuel. The cost of operating a hydroelectric plant is nearly
immune to increases in the cost of
fossil
fuels such as
oil,
natural gas or coal, and no imports are
needed.
Hydroelectric plants also tend to have longer economic lives than
fuel-fired generation, with some plants now in service which were
built 50 to 100 years ago. Operating labor cost is also usually
low, as plants are automated and have few personnel on site during
normal operation.
Where a dam serves multiple purposes, a hydroelectric plant may be
added with relatively low construction cost, providing a useful
revenue stream to offset the costs of dam operation.
It has been calculated
that the sale of electricity from the Three Gorges Dam
will cover the construction costs after 5 to 8
years of full generation.
Greenhouse gas emissions
Since hydroelectric dams do not burn fossil fuels, they do not
directly produce
carbon dioxide (a
greenhouse gas). While some carbon dioxide is produced during
manufacture and construction of the project, this is a tiny
fraction of the operating emissions of equivalent fossil-fuel
electricity generation.
One measurement of greenhouse gas related and
other externality comparison between energy sources can be found in
the ExternE project by the Paul
Scherrer Institut and the University of Stuttgart
which was funded by the European
Commission
. According to this project, hydroelectricity
produces the least amount of
greenhouse
gases and
externality of any energy
source. Coming in second place was
wind,
third was
nuclear energy, and fourth
was
solar photovoltaic. The extremely positive
greenhouse gas impact of hydroelectricity is
found especially in temperate climates. The above study was for
local energy in
Europe; presumably similar
conditions prevail in North America and Northern Asia, which all
see a regular, natural freeze/thaw cycle (with associated seasonal
plant decay and regrowth).
Related activities
Reservoirs created by hydroelectric schemes often provide
facilities for
water sports,
and become tourist attractions in themselves. In some countries,
aquaculture in reservoirs is common.
Multi-use dams installed for
irrigation support
agriculture with a relatively constant water
supply. Large hydro dams can control floods, which would otherwise
affect people living downstream of the project.
Disadvantages
Failure Hazard
Dam failures have been some of the
largest man-made disasters in history.Also, good design and
construction are not an adequate guarantee of safety.Dams are
tempting industrial targets for wartime attack,
sabotage and terrorism.
For
example, the Banqiao
Dam
failure in Southern China resulted in the deaths of
171,000 people and left millions homeless.Also, the creation of
a dam in a geologically inappropriate location may cause disasters
like the one of the Vajont
Dam
in Italy, where almost 2000 people died, in
1963.
Smaller dams and
micro hydro facilities
create less risk, but can form continuing hazardseven after they
have been decommissioned.For example, the Kelly Barnes small
hydroelectric dam failed in 1967, causing 39 deaths with the Toccoa
Flood,ten years after its power plant was decommissioned in
1957.
Large Power Outages caused by dam failures
Large dams, whilst generally reliable can suffer castrohpic failure
to the dam itself, or the connections and substations, leading to
extremely large and sudden loss of output, which can plunge an
entire network off line, for hours or even months depending on the
damage. Hence whilst these are regarded as "firm" or "despatchable"
sources, in reality duplication or back up has to be provided.
Examples are:
These are very large losses of power; for comparison, the average
UK power demand is around 37 GW.
Limited Service Life
Almost all rivers convey
silt. Dams on those
rivers will retain silt in their catchments, because by slowing the
water, and reducing turbulence, the silt will fall to the
bottom.Siltation reduces a dam's water storage so that water from a
wet season cannot be stored for use in a dry season.Often at or
slightly after that point, the dam becomes uneconomic.Near the end
of the siltation, the basins of dams fill to the top of the lowest
spillway,and even storage from a storm to the end of dry weather
will fail.Some especially poor dams can fail from siltation in as
little as 20 years.
Larger dams are not immune. For example, the Three Gorges Dam in
China has an estimated life that may be as short as 70 years.
Dams' useful lives can be extended with sediment bypassing, special
weirs,and forestation projects to reduce a watershed's silt
production,but at some point most dams become uneconomic to
operate.
Environmental damage
Hydroelectric projects can be disruptive to surrounding aquatic
ecosystems both upstream and downstream of
the plant site.
For instance, studies have shown that dams
along the Atlantic
and Pacific
coasts of North
America have reduced salmon populations
by preventing access to spawning
grounds upstream, even though most dams in salmon habitat have
fish ladders installed. Salmon
spawn are also harmed on their
migration to sea when they must pass through
turbines. This has led to some areas
transporting smolt downstream by
barge during
parts of the year.
In some cases dams have been demolished (for
example the Marmot
Dam
demolished in 2007) because of impact on
fish. Turbine and power-plant designs that are easier on
aquatic life are an active area of research. Mitigation measures
such as fish ladders may be required at new projects or as a
condition of re-licensing of existing projects.
Generation of hydroelectric power changes the downstream river
environment. Water exiting a turbine usually contains very little
suspended sediment, which can lead to scouring of river beds and
loss of riverbanks. Since turbine gates are often opened
intermittently, rapid or even daily fluctuations in river flow are
observed.
For example, in the Grand Canyon
, the daily cyclic flow variation caused by Glen Canyon
Dam
was found to be contributing to erosion of sand
bars. Dissolved
oxygen content of the
water may change from pre-construction conditions. Depending on the
location, water exiting from turbines is typically much warmer than
the pre-dam water, which can change aquatic faunal populations,
including
endangered species, and
prevent natural freezing processes from occurring. Some
hydroelectric projects also use
canals to
divert a river at a shallower gradient to increase the head of the
scheme. In some cases, the entire river may be diverted leaving a
dry riverbed.
Examples include the Tekapo
and Pukaki Rivers
in New
Zealand.
Greenhouse gas emissions
Lower positive impacts are found in the tropical regions, as it has
been noted that the reservoirs of power plants in tropical regions
may produce substantial amounts of
methane
and
carbon dioxide. This is due to
plant material in flooded areas decaying in an
anaerobic environment, and forming
methane, a very potent
greenhouse
gas. According to the
World
Commission on Dams report, where the reservoir is large
compared to the generating capacity (less than 100 watts per square
metre of surface area) and no clearing of the forests in the area
was undertaken prior to impoundment of the reservoir, greenhouse
gas emissions from the reservoir may be higher than those of a
conventional oil-fired thermal generation plant. Although these
emissions represent carbon already in the biosphere, not fossil
deposits that had been sequestered from the carbon cycle, there is
a greater amount of
methane due to
anaerobic decay, causing greater
damage than would otherwise have occurred had the forest decayed
naturally.
In
boreal reservoirs of Canada and
Northern Europe, however, greenhouse gas emissions are typically
only 2% to 8% of any kind of conventional fossil-fuel thermal
generation. A new class of underwater logging operation that
targets drowned forests can mitigate the effect of forest
decay.
In 2007,
International Rivers
accused hydropower firms for cheating with fake carbon credits
under the
Clean Development
Mechanism (CDM), for hydropower projects already finished or
under construction at the moment they applied to join the CDM.
These carbon credits – of hydropower projects under the CDM in
developing countries – can be sold to companies and governments in
rich countries, in order to comply with the
Kyoto protocol.
Population relocation
Another disadvantage of hydroelectric dams is the need to relocate
the people living where the reservoirs are planned. In February
2008, it was estimated that 40-80 million people worldwide had been
physically displaced as a direct result of dam construction. In
many cases, no amount of compensation can replace ancestral and
cultural attachments to places that have spiritual value to the
displaced population. Additionally, historically and culturally
important sites can be flooded and lost.
Such problems have
arisen at the Three Gorges
Dam project in China, the Clyde Dam
in New Zealand and the Ilısu Dam
in Southeastern Turkey.
Affected by flow shortage
Changes in the amount of river flow will correlate with the amount
of energy produced by a dam. Because of global warming, the volume
of glaciers has decreased, such as the
North Cascades glaciers, which have lost a
third of their volume since 1950, resulting in stream flows that
have decreased by as much as 34%. The result of diminished river
flow can be power shortages in areas that depend heavily on
hydroelectric power.
Comparison with other methods of power generation
Hydroelectricity eliminates the
flue gas
emissions from fossil fuel combustion, including pollutants
such as
sulfur dioxide,
nitric oxide,
carbon
monoxide, dust, and
mercury in
the
coal. Hydroelectricity also avoids the
hazards of
coal mining and the indirect
health effects of coal emissions.Compared to
nuclear power, hydroelectricity generates no
nuclear waste, has none of the dangers
associated with
uranium mining, nor
nuclear leaks.
Unlike uranium, hydroelectricity is also a renewable energy
source.
Compared to
wind farms, hydroelectricity
power plants have a more predictable load factor. If the project
has a storage reservoir, it can be dispatched to generate power
when needed. Hydroelectric plants can be easily regulated to follow
variations in power demand.
Unlike fossil-fueled combustion turbines, construction of a
hydroelectric plant requires a long lead-time for site studies,
hydrological studies, and environmental impact assessment.
Hydrological data up to 50 years or more is usually required to
determine the best sites and operating regimes for a large
hydroelectric plant. Unlike plants operated by fuel, such as fossil
or nuclear energy, the number of sites that can be economically
developed for hydroelectric production is limited; in many areas
the most cost effective sites have already been exploited. New
hydro sites tend to be far from population centers and require
extensive transmission lines. Hydroelectric generation depends on
rainfall in the watershed, and may be significantly reduced in
years of low rainfall or snowmelt. Long-term energy yield may be
affected by climate change. Utilities that primarily use
hydroelectric power may spend additional capital to build extra
capacity to ensure sufficient power is available in low water
years.
In parts
of Canada (the provinces of British Columbia
, Manitoba
, Ontario
, Quebec
, Newfoundland
and Labrador
) hydroelectricity is used so extensively that the
word "hydro" is often used to refer to any electricity delivered by a power utility.
The government-run power utilities in these provinces are called
BC Hydro,
Manitoba Hydro,
Hydro
One (formerly "Ontario Hydro"),
Hydro-Québec and
Newfoundland and Labrador
Hydro respectively. Hydro-Québec is the world's largest
hydroelectric generating company, with a total installed capacity
(2007) of 35,647 MW, including 33,305 MW of hydroelectric
generation.
Countries with the most hydro-electric capacity
The ranking of hydro-electric capacity is either by actual annual
energy production or by installed capacity power rating. A
hydro-electric plant rarely operates at its full power rating over
a full year; the ratio between annual average power and installed
capacity rating is the
capacity
factor. The installed capacity is the sum of all generator
nameplate power ratings. Sources came from
BP Statistical
Review - Full Report 2009
The top
six dams, in descending order of their annual electricity
generation, are: the Three Gorges Dam in China
, the
Itaipu
Dam
on the border of Paraguay
and Brazil
, the
Guri Dam in Venezuela
, the Tucurui
dam
in Brazil, the
Sayano-Shushenskaya
Dam in Russia
and the
Krasnoyarsk
hydroelectric dam
, also in Russia (see
List of
the largest hydroelectric power stations).
Brazil,
Canada, Norway, Switzerland and Venezuela are the only countries in
the world where the majority of the internal electric energy
production is from hydroelectric power, while Paraguay not only produces 100% its electricity from
hydroelectric dams, but exports 90% of its production to Brazil and
to the Argentine. Norway
produces
98–99% of its electricity from hydroelectric sources.
|
| Country |
Annual Hydroelectric
Energy Production(TWh)
|
Installed
Capacity (GW)
|
Capacity
Factor
|
Percent of
all electricity
|
| (2008) |
585.2 |
171.52 |
0.37 |
17.18 |
|
369.5 |
88.974 |
0.59 |
61.12 |
|
363.8 |
69.080 |
0.56 |
85.56
|
|
250.6 |
79.511 |
0.42 |
5.74 |
|
167.0 |
45.000 |
0.42 |
17.64 |
|
140.5 |
27.528 |
0.49 |
98.25 |
|
115.6 |
33.600 |
0.43 |
15.80 |
|
86.8 |
- |
- |
67.17 |
|
69.2 |
27.229 |
0.37 |
7.21 |
|
65.5 |
16.209 |
0.46 |
44.34 |
| (2006) |
64.0 |
- |
- |
|
|
63.4 |
25.335 |
0.25 |
11.23 |
Old hydro-electric power stations
Australia
- A
small hydroelectric station, generating 650 kW, opened at
Waratah, Tasmania
in 1885.
- Duck
Reach
, Launceston
, Tasmania. Completed 1895. The first publicly owned
hydro-electric plant in the Southern Hemisphere. Supplied power to
the city of Launceston for street lighting.
- The Snowy Mountains Scheme has turbines all along the tunnel so
it, in some perspectives it is also another hydroelectric station.
However, it only operates during peak hours of the day and mostly
during the evening and early night. It supplies electricity to all over the
regions of New South
Wales
.
Canada
- The
oldest continuously-operated hydroelectric generator in Canada is
located in St. Stephen, New Brunswick
. Part of the construction of the Milltown
Cotton Mill, this rope-driven generator originally powered the
electric lights for the mill when it opened in 1882, and in 1888
started providing power to homes in the town. NB Power now owns and operates this as part of the
Milltown Dam hydroelectric station.
Chile
- Chivilingo was the first hydroelectric plant
in Chile
and the
second in South America. With first power produced in 1897,
it has two Pelton wheel turbines each
turning a 215 kW generator. It was installed to provide power to
mines and the city of Lota,
Chile
.
United States
- Niagara Falls
, New York. Operation began locally in 1895
and power was transmitted to Buffalo, New York, in 1896.
- Claverack Creek, in Stottville,
New York
, believed to be the oldest hydro power site in the
United States. The turbine, a Morgan Smith, was constructed
in 1869 and installed 2 years later. It is one of the earliest
water wheel installations in the United States to generate
electricity. It is owned today by Edison Hydro.
- The
oldest continuously-operated commercial hydroelectric plant in the
United States is built on the Hudson River at Mechanicville, New York
. The seven 750 kW units at this
station initially supplied power at a frequency of 38 Hz, but later were
increased in speed to 40 Hz. It went into commercial service
22 July 1898. It is now being restored to its original condition
and remains in commercial operation.
Major schemes under construction
Only projects with generating capacity greater than or equal to
2,000 MW are listed.
| Name |
Maximum Capacity |
Country |
Construction started |
Scheduled completion |
Comments |
Xiluodu Dam |
12,600 MW |
China |
December 26, 2005 |
2015 |
Construction once stopped due to lack of environmental impact
study. |
| Siang Upper HE
Project |
11,000 MW |
India |
April, 2009 |
2024 |
Multi-phase construction over a period of 15 years.
Construction was delayed due to dispute with China. |
Xiangjiaba Dam |
6,400 MW |
China |
November 26, 2006 |
2015 |
|
Longtan Dam |
6,300 MW |
China |
July 1, 2001 |
December 2009 |
|
| Nuozhadu Dam |
5,850 MW |
China |
2006 |
2017 |
|
| Jinping 2 Hydropower
Station |
4,800 MW |
China |
January 30, 2007 |
2014 |
To build this dam, 23 families and 129 local residents need to
be moved. It works with Jinping 1
Hydropower Station as a group. |
Laxiwa
Dam |
4,200 MW |
China |
April 18, 2006 |
2010 |
|
Xiaowan Dam |
4,200 MW |
China |
January 1, 2002 |
December 2012 |
|
| Jinping 1 Hydropower Station |
3,600 MW |
China |
November 11, 2005 |
2014 |
|
| Pubugou Dam |
3,300 MW |
China |
March 30, 2004 |
2010 |
|
Goupitan Dam |
3,000 MW |
China |
November 8, 2003 |
2011 |
|
| Guanyinyan Dam |
3,000 MW |
China |
2008 |
2015 |
Construction of the roads and spillway started. |
| Lianghekou Dam |
3,000 MW |
China |
2009 |
2015 |
|
| Boguchan Dam |
3,000 MW |
Russia |
1980 |
2012 |
|
| Chapetón |
3,000 MW |
Argentina |
|
|
|
| Dagangshan |
2,600 MW |
China |
August 15, 2008 |
2014 |
|
| Jinanqiao Dam |
2,400 MW |
China |
December 2006 |
2010 |
|
| Guandi Dam |
2,400 MW |
China |
Novermber 11 2007 |
2012 |
| Liyuan Dam |
2,400 MW |
China |
2008 |
|
|
Tocoma Dam
Bolívar
State |
2,160 MW |
Venezuela |
2004 |
2014 |
This new power plant would be the last development in the Low
Caroni Basin, bringing the total to six power plants on the same
river, including the 10,000MW Guri Dam. |
| Ludila Dam |
2,100 MW |
China |
2007 |
2015 |
Construction halt due to lack of the evnironmental
assessment. |
Bureya
Dam |
2,010 MW |
Russia |
1978 |
2009 |
|
| Shuangjiangkou Dam |
2,000 MW |
China |
December, 2007 |
|
The dam will be 314 m high. |
| Ahai Dam |
2,000 MW |
China |
July 27, 2006 |
|
|
| Subansiri Lower Dam |
2,000 MW |
India |
2005 |
2012 |
|
Proposed major hydroelectric projects
Only projects with generating capacity greater than or equal to
2,000 MW are listed.
| Name |
Maximum Capacity |
Country |
Construction starts |
Scheduled completion |
Comments |
| Red Sea dam |
50,000 MW |
Africa/Middle
East |
Unknown |
Unknown |
Still in planning, would be largest dam in the world |
Grand
Inga |
40,000 MW |
Democratic Republic of the
Congo |
2010 |
Unknown |
|
| Baihetan Dam |
13,050 MW |
China |
2009 |
2015 |
Still in planning |
| Wudongde Dam |
7,500 MW |
China |
2009 |
2015 |
Still in planning |
Rampart Dam |
4,500 MW |
United States |
|
|
Canceled |
| Maji Dam |
4,200 MW |
China |
2008 |
2013 |
|
| Songta Dam |
4,200 MW |
China |
2008 |
2013 |
|
| Liangjiaren Dam |
4,000 MW |
China |
2009 |
2015 |
Still in planning |
| Jirau Dam |
3,300 MW |
Brazil |
2007 |
2012 |
|
| Pati Dam |
3,300 MW |
Argentina |
|
|
|
| Santo Antônio Dam |
3,150 MW |
Brazil |
2007 |
2012 |
|
| Dibang |
3,000 MW |
India |
|
|
|
| Lower
Churchill |
2,800 MW |
Canada |
2009 |
2014 |
|
| HidroAysén |
2,750 MW |
Chile |
|
2020 |
|
| Lenggu Dam |
2,718 MW |
China |
2015 |
|
|
| Changheba Dam |
2,200 MW |
China |
2009 |
2015 |
|
| Subansiri Upper HE
Project |
2,500 MW |
India |
2012 |
Unknown |
|
| Banduo 1 Dam |
2,000 MW |
China |
2009 |
|
|
|
Cost
United States
In the United States, a study is required before constructing a
hydroelectric project. In 2008, a study could cost up to $50,000
for a run of a stream. Both federal and state licenses were
required. A license typically cost between $150,000 and $1 million.
A project earns money from the sale of energy, the sale of
capacity, and the sale of renewable energy credits.
See also
Topics:
Lists:
Categories:
Organisations:
Notes
- http://www.eia.doe.gov/ Energy Information Administration
international statistics database
- Renewables Global Status Report 2006 Update,
REN21, published
2007, accessed 2007-05-16; see Table 4, p. 20.
- Summer of International dissent against Heavy
Industry, Saving Iceland, published 2007, accessed
2007-05-17
- Hydropower – A Way of Becoming Independent of
Fossil Energy?
- Beyond Three Gorges in China
- Stay
Clear, Stay Safe, Ontario Power Generation
- See the references for the articles in the list of
Dam failures.
Duplicating them here is wasteful.
- Toccoa Flood USGS Historical Site, retrieved
02sep2009
- Extreme Reservoir Siltation: A Case Study Retrieved
02sep2009
- Three Gorges Project. Part IV: Siltation of TGP
Retrieved 02sep2009
- Siltation in Small Dams Retrieved
02sep2009
- Sedimentation Problems with Dams
- WCD
Findal Report, Retrieved 7/10/2009
- Hydroelectric power's dirty secret
revealed
- Inhabitat » “Rediscovered” Wood & The Triton
Sawfish
- Briefing of World Commission on Dams
- .
-
http://archives.cbc.ca/economy_business/energy/topics/1750/
- Hydro-Québec. 2007 Annual Report. Montreal, April 2008.
- Consumption TWh'!A1
- [1]
- Carl Sulzberger, The Chivilingo Plant- Early Hydropower in
Chile, in IEEE Power & Energy, Volume 6, No. 4
July/August 2008, ISSN 1540-7977, pg. 60
- The Historic Mechanicville Hydroelectric Station Part 1:
The Early Days, IEEE Industry Applications Magazine, Jan/Feb.
2007
-
http://www.ehdc.com.cn/newsite/DisplayNewsMaster/ShowNews.aspx?Id=1175
- http://www.cb600.cn/info_view.asp?id=1357280
-
http://zt.xxgk.yn.gov.cn/canton_model12/newsview.aspx?id=368628
- http://www.cjwsjy.com.cn/News/Company/200808055706.htm
References
External links
- International Hydropower Association
- National
Hydropower Association, USA
- Hydropower
Reform Coalition, USA
- Interactive
site that demonstrates dams' effects on rivers
- Center of expertise on hydropower impacts on fish and fish
habitat, Canada
- Hydro-Québec
- CBC Digital Archives – Hydroelectricity: The Power
of Water
- University of Washington Libraries – Seattle Power and
Water Supply Collection
- International Rivers
- United States Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(FERC)
- European Small
Hydropower Association
- Power at Niagara Falls Niagara Falls Public
Library (Ont.)
- Milford Hydroelectric Station Restoration Tour
Built by Henry Ford in 1939
- 60,000,000 Horsepower Ready to be Harnessed for Work: when
these giants are set in action, the real age of electricity will
begin and our dreams will become realities, Popular Science monthly, February 1919, page
46-47, Scanned by Google Books:
http://books.google.com/books?id=7igDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA46
: 6.4 GW
, Ontario
, Wisconsin
completed 1882, A waterwheel on the Fox river supplied the first
commercial hydroelectric power for lighting to two paper mills and
a house, two years after Thomas Edison
demonstrated incandescent
lighting to the public. Within a matter of weeks of this
installation, a power plant was also put into commercial service at
Minneapolis
.
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