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I still don't get what prevents just pumping the seawater up the lake in sufficient quantities. Maybe using solar to power the pumps - intermittency won't be a

I still don't get what prevents just pumping the seawater up the lake in sufficient quantities. Maybe using solar to power the pumps - intermittency won't be a problem. Lake will become brackish, but whatever.

Xophmeister 3y ago
That’s the spirit! The environment’s not going to destroy itself, dammit!
- anovikov 3y ago
  The lake was artificial from the beginning. It was a part of channel's initial project. Idk if it even qualifies as "environment".
  - patmorgan23 3y ago
    The river used to create the lake isn't artificial. What's going to happen to everything down stream once the lake has become brackish? What happens to the people or farmers that depend on the lake for fresh water?
    - anovikov 3y ago
      Why is there anything downstream? I mean, it shouldn't be the case because then the water which could be used for the channel locks, is wasted being sent there. If there is anything going downstream from the lake indeed, solution is even simpler - close it off with a dam - but i don't think it's the case. I can't see anything on the map that is being fed from the lake apart from channel locks. And river that feeds the lake is of course, not artificial - Chagres river - but nothing is gonna happen to it.
m4rtink 3y ago
Why seawater ? Just pump the released water back up. If the issue is contamination with brackish water from the lower part, I'm sure that could be handled by some clever valve management - eq. release water to a freshwater pond when lowering a ship, so you loose only the water in the lowered chamber & can pump the water in the pond back up. Given the ships going up might import some of the brackish water when rising up, I don't think contamination can be fully prevented anyway. Sure, there will be power demand for all the pumping, but given how important this is I would think it would be economicaly sustainable- possibly with similar technology Japan uses for floodwater pumping in the GCANS project (gas turbine driven pumps).

Xophmeister 3y ago

That’s the spirit! The environment’s not going to destroy itself, dammit!

anovikov 3y ago
The lake was artificial from the beginning. It was a part of channel's initial project. Idk if it even qualifies as "environment".
- patmorgan23 3y ago
  The river used to create the lake isn't artificial. What's going to happen to everything down stream once the lake has become brackish? What happens to the people or farmers that depend on the lake for fresh water?
  - anovikov 3y ago
    Why is there anything downstream? I mean, it shouldn't be the case because then the water which could be used for the channel locks, is wasted being sent there. If there is anything going downstream from the lake indeed, solution is even simpler - close it off with a dam - but i don't think it's the case. I can't see anything on the map that is being fed from the lake apart from channel locks. And river that feeds the lake is of course, not artificial - Chagres river - but nothing is gonna happen to it.

m4rtink 3y ago

Why seawater ? Just pump the released water back up. If the issue is contamination with brackish water from the lower part, I'm sure that could be handled by some clever valve management - eq. release water to a freshwater pond when lowering a ship, so you loose only the water in the lowered chamber & can pump the water in the pond back up. Given the ships going up might import some of the brackish water when rising up, I don't think contamination can be fully prevented anyway. Sure, there will be power demand for all the pumping, but given how important this is I would think it would be economicaly sustainable- possibly with similar technology Japan uses for floodwater pumping in the GCANS project (gas turbine driven pumps).