Continuing the trend of alternative energy related articles, I wanted to take some time this week to talk about hydroelectric power. Like geothermal energy, hydroelectric is not often spoken about and sometimes even forgotten completely in the grand scheme of alternative energies. And, to make its popularity even smaller, hydroelectric isn't even the only form of alternative energy to use water. But should we be considering hydroelectric more heavily? Or, like fracking, does it deserve to be forgotten and replaced by better options? Well, these are some of the questions I hope to answer in this week's post. Let's start by talking about what hydroelectric power is, and what it can do for us and the environment.
What is hydroelectric power?
Hydroelectric power is energy generated from the flow of water. This water can come from larger bodies of water such as lakes, or smaller ones such as rivers or streams. Most commonly, structures such as dams are used to harness this flow, but there are other hydroelectric plants that use different methods. Essentially, water flows down and into the dam, spinning a rotor connected to a generator. The kinetic energy harnessed by the spinning motion is then converted into energy forms that we can harness, like electricity. The water that previously went into the dam at the top is then released at the bottom, and the process repeats continuously.
Now, obviously the process is a bit more complicated than my simple description. However, as the nature of this post will be more focused on the usage debate of hydroelectric energy rather than how it's generated, I don't find it completely necessary to explain the process in depth. This, combined with the fact that it's been explained much better by other sources, means that I will not be talking about the inner workings of hydroelectric energies in this post. However, if you are still interested in learning about how exactly it works, you can click here to see an in-depth diagram. (Please note: the diagram requires the use of Adobe Flash to view. If you don't have it, you can click here for an alternate article).
What can hydroelectric power be used for?
Hydroelectric power can essentially be used for any process requiring electricity. It can be used to power homes, gadgets, anything one would need. However, it should also be noted that for processes like heating buildings, while hydroelectric power can be used, it's not necessarily the best option as it requires another energy conversion (electricity to heat energy). In that case, it would be better to use geothermal energy, as no conversion would be required, making the process more direct and efficient. I find it important to note that, while some methods of gathering energy like hydroelectric CAN be used for a multitude of processes, there may be better choices depending on what you trying to do. Food for thought!
Pros of hydroelectric energy
Hydroelectric energy provides some great benefits, the largest of which is actually shared by geothermal energy. Much like geothermal, hydroelectric is a very consistent source of energy, mainly because of the fact that it relies on the water cycle, which is a process that, as we all know, never stops. For this reason, hydroelectric is considered to be more reliable than solar because there is an extremely small chance power production would ever stop. However, hydro power plants that rely on natural river currents for their flow of water, rather than a dammed lake, are considered less reliable because the current of a river is more susceptible to change. Additionally, while having high upfront costs, hydroelectric power plants are extremely cheap to maintain, and do generate energy in a fairly eco-friendly manner (more on that later).
Also, dams and power plants constructed to help harness hydroelectric energy have benefits outside of energy production. Dams can help with flood control, can create reliable water supplies for people living in the area, and can even help to create recreational areas for surrounding towns.
Cons of hydroelectric energy
However, there are some distinct downsides to the production of hydroelectric energy. First, the dams constructed to generate this power can have some serious negative effects on the ecosystems around them. The blockage of water flow can cause flooding on the top half of the dam, destroying ecosystems around it. Additionally, dams block natural fish passages, preventing migration tendencies and dropping populations. In some cases, the construction of dams have also forced local communities to relocate, displacing people and their families. Dams can also break, causing serious flooding problems for nearby communities.
And finally, hydroelectric energy isn't completely clean either. While the production of the energy itself is clean, the construction of dams and other types of power plants needed for this production is not. Because dams are commonly built on large scales, lots of carbon dioxide and other emissions are released during construction. Additionally, loss of plant life in recently flooded areas (as a result of the dam) release large amounts of methane as they decompose. In short: it's the construction of hydroelectric power plants that do the most harm, rather than the production of the energy itself.
Conclusion
As of 2016, hydroelectric power accounted for 24% of the renewable energy generated in the United States (renewable energy accounting for 10% of the total energy produced). And, over the past few years, both in the United States and around the world, the adoption of hydroelectric energy has increased. Is this good? Well, in my opinion, sort of. Hydroelectric energy remains a better substitution for coil, oil, and natural gas, but the effects it has on the local environments around it cannot be ignored. Like geothermal, it certainly has its downsides, but with recent changes and redesigns (like the addition of specific channels to allow fish migration) it remains to be seen if hydroelectric will become a better option in the future.
The main ideas here, again very similar to geothermal energy, is moderation and caution. Full adoption of this energy source without consideration of the negative effects it has will only lead to more trouble (as we've seen with fracking) but hydroelectric energy does have its uses in certain situations. Combined with other forms of alternative energy, it can be a very effective and clean way of supplying energy. So, hydroelectric energy is definitely an option to consider more seriously, but how much it should actually be used remains to be seen.
All credit for information used in this post goes to:
https://www.studentenergy.org/topics/hydro-power
https://www.energy.gov/eere/water/how-hydropower-works
https://water.usgs.gov/edu/wuhy.html
http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-hydroelectric-power.htm
https://www.originenergy.com.au/blog/about-energy/what-is-hydropower.html
Images:
http://blog.heartland.org/2014/12/hydro-power-gives-michigan-a-renewable-energy-advantage/
https://forum.nationstates.net/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=241795
http://hand2hand2hand.blogspot.com/2012/12/hydroelectric-power-generation.html
http://sites.uoit.ca/sustainabilitytoday/blog-posts/blog-posts/2014/09/Capturing-the-power-of-water.php
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Electricity_pylon_near_colliers_wood_london.jpg
https://www.relyence.com/2017/06/07/reliability-prediction-mtbf-analysis-the-path-to-product-improvement/
https://www.bisparks.org/facilities/mcdowell-dam-recreation-area/
http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/oroville-dam-california-regulators-dismissed-flood-warning-12-years-ago-1606440
http://www.highestbridges.com/wiki/index.php?title=File:XiaowanDamConstruction.jpg&limit=20
http://www.firsthdwallpapers.com/catfish-wallpapers.html
https://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/featured/sabo
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