Obama Administration Announced Plans to Expand Hydroelectric Program

[sfc_oliver]

Newest thing in hydroelectric has been held up by the environmentalists again. A float which is actually a magnet on a copper rod in the ocean. As the waves raise and lower the float electricity is generated.

But it might cause some harm to the fish because of the anchors changing the ocean floor.

I guess we better just burn coal.

[Why?Town]

"One of the advantages to hydroelectric power noted by Secretary Chu is that the energy produced can be stored behind the dam.  Being able to store energy on-site rather than consume it immediately allows energy to be used when it is most needed."

The energy produced at a hydroelectric dam is electricity. If you can store electricity  "behind the dam" why can't you store it behind the coal furnace, behind the nuclear reactor, or behind the farms (solar and wind)?

Does the U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu even understand hydroelectric power?

You do not store the energy produced (electricity)  "behind the dam". You store potential energy "behind the dam" in the form of water. The actual energy is the flow of water (as determined by a number of factors) through generators which convert it to electricity to be used as needed. This is indeed an advantage of hydroelectric power.

Maybe Mr. Chu was just trying to state it in a way that any idiot may be able to understand. If that is the case, I believe he has insulted a great many of us.

[Towntalk]

Now here is something we can agree on. Hydroelectric power is as old as our country. We have an example of it right here in Mill Creek Park.

Where in Ohio could a dam be built to store enough water to power a hydroelectric plant to supply electricity statewide and at what cost?

The plan says that the dams and power plants would be built by private sector companies "non-federal facilities...", and without question would take years to build (planning, funding, acquiring the needed land, land preparation and construction.

It wouldn't be as big as Hoover Dam of course, or as powerful as the Niagara Falls plant, or the TVA.

[irishbobcat]

Obama Administration Announced Plans to Expand Hydroelectric Program
Written by Ruedigar Matthes

July 1, 2009 - The U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced today that up to $32 million dollars of Recovery Act funding will be used to expand the harvest of hydroelectric power. "There's no one solution to the energy crisis, but hydro-power is clearly part of the solution and represents a major opportunity to create more clean energy jobs," said Secretary Chu.
The funding would be used on existing facilities in order to modernize the current infrastructures, increase efficiency and reduce the impact that the facilities have on the environment. "Investing in our existing hydro-power infrastructure will strengthen our economy, reduce pollution and help us toward energy independence," said Chu. The announcement made today is designed to work on non-federal facilities; increasing energy output and environmental stewardship by supporting the deployment of turbines and control technologies.
·   
One of the advantages to hydroelectric power noted by Secretary Chu is that the energy produced can be stored behind the dam. Being able to store energy on-site rather than consume it immediately allows energy to be used when it is most needed. By improving the hydro infrastructure, we open the door to the utilization and economic viability of intermittent sources of renewable energy such as wind and solar. Secretary Chu supports the development of pumped storage technology in order to further take advantage of the said benefits.
The funding, which comes under the Federal Recovery Act, will be competitively awarded to a variety of non-federal facilities that can be developed without major modifications to the existing dams and a minimum of regulatory delay.
Projects will be selected in two areas:
·   Deployment of Hydro-power Upgrades at Projects >50 MW: These include projects at large, non-federal facilities (greater than 50 MW capacity) with existing or advanced technologies that will enable improved environmental performance and significant new generation.
·   Deployment of Hydro-power Upgrades at Projects < 50 MW: These include projects at small-scale non-federal facilities (less than 50 MWs) with existing or advanced technologies that will enable improved environmental performance and significant new generation.
Letters of intent to receive funding are due July 22, 2009 and completed applications are due August 20, 2009. Projects are expected to begin in fiscal year 2010.
Every project tha we can start and complete that doesn't involve oil, coal, or nukes is a victory for America in the 21st century!
Dennis Spisak
Mahoning Valley Green Party
Ohio Green Party
www.ohiogreens.org
www.votespisak.org/thinkgreen/