The problem Water is the world’s largest developed source of renewable energy. But hydropower has a problem -- the conventional model for development often brings with it significant negative environmental and social impacts. Hydropower also sits at the nexus of a global challenge - how do we meet growing demands for water and energy sustainably and adaptively in the context of climate change? We need to change the way hydropower is developed to make more efficient and synergistic use of a dwindling resource under high demand. Change in water availability compared with average 1961-1990 (%) 2050 based on IPCC scenario A1 more than 20 20 to 0 0 to -20 -20 and more Source: Arnell 2004. 2.5 Billion have unreliable or no access to electricity of the 7 Billion people on Earth today, = 100 Million 2.8 Billion live in areas of high water stress Sources: (Top) Adapted from: World Bank. “Infographic: Thirsty Energy - Energy and Water’s Interdependence.” Infographic: Thirsty Energy. World Bank, 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 2014. (Bottom) Adapted from: Arnell, N. W., et al. (2004) Climate and socio-economic scenarios for global-scale climate change impacts assessments: characterising the SRES storylines, Global Environmental Change, 14. pp.3-20. A new approach to hydropower development
Transcript
The problemWater is the world’s largest developed source of renewable energy.
But hydropower has a problem -- the conventional model for development often brings with it significant negative
environmental and social impacts. Hydropower also sits at the nexus of a global challenge - how do we meet growing
demands for water and energy sustainably and adaptively in the context of climate change?
We need to change the way hydropower is developed to make more efficient and synergistic use of a dwindling resource under high demand.
Change in water availabilitycompared with average1961-1990 (%)2050 based on IPCC scenario A1
more than 20
20 to 0
0 to -20
-20 and more
Source: Arnell 2004.
2.5 Billionhave unreliable or no access to electricity
of the 7 Billion
people on Earth today,
= 100 Million
2.8 Billionlive in areas ofhigh water stress
Sources: (Top) Adapted from: World Bank. “Infographic: Thirsty Energy - Energy and Water’s Interdependence.” Infographic: Thirsty Energy. World Bank, 16 Jan. 2014. Web. 2014. (Bottom) Adapted from: Arnell, N. W., et al. (2004) Climate and socio-economic scenarios for global-scale climate change impacts assessments: characterising the SRES storylines, Global Environmental Change, 14. pp.3-20.
A new approach to hydropower development
The solutionCan hydropower be high-benefit and low-impact? Yes.
High-benefit, low-impact hydropower
Conventional hydropower is
characterized by a centralized approach
to project planning and has large
environmental, political, and social
impacts.
EcoSmartHydro Power is distributed,
low-impact, and successful at the utility
scale. While conventional hydropower
plants are designed solely to maximize
power output, EcoSmartHydro Power
networks are designed to maximize
power output while maintaining the
health of watershed ecosystems and
the communities that surround them.
What does EcoSmartHydro Power look like?
It’s a locally distributed system
of run-of-river plants and low weirs
that is tailored to capture the head
of a traditional dam while inundating
significantly less land, allowing
for smarter land use and healthy
riparian ecosystems. EcoSmartHydro
Power systems can be designed to
include storage where needed while
preserving sensitive or occupied land.
EcoSmartHydro is enabled by low-head
hydropower technologies like Natel
Energy’s hydroEngine, a fish-friendly,
low-head power generation technology
that efficiently generates power from
drops of 2 to 18 meters.
Help us fix hydropower.Email us at:[email protected] if you’d like to help us develop this vision.
Supports ecosystems Produces low-cost power Helps local communities
EcoSmartHydro, the EcoSmartHydro logo, and hydroEngine are registered trademarks of Natel Energy, Inc. All rights reserved.
