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Nice work, and clean power is fantastic. But didnt he destroy the natural ecosystem of the stream, from the perspective of fish.

jimktrains2 13y ago
Couldn't one figure out how to divert enough stream water and the fish through their natural environment?
kelvin0 13y ago
The fish go into the pipe, then get into a 'special' chamber. Some are eaten, others used as compost. Can't be any greener ;-)
WestCoastJustin 13y ago
> didn't he destroy the natural ecosystem of the stream, from the perspective of fish In this case, maybe, but it doesn't show where they are getting the water from, upstream. The system typically looks like the following. You build a dam, have a grate (to stop sticks/fish/branches/etc) from entering your piping system. You then divert a small % of the flow into your piping which connects to the generator, then return the flow to the main stream. It is in your best interest to stop objects (other than water) from entering the piping system, as it could clog up, or damage the turbine blades. So, you want to invest in the proper grating system upstream. I guess my point is, the by product of protecting your piping from clogs and damage to turbine blades, you are helping to preserve the natural ecosystem! A win-win. |||| < stream vvvv +--------+ | man | | made | < grate + pipe to divert % of flow | dam +>>>-----------\ +--------+ \ < going downhill to increase pressure ||| +--\------+ ||| | hydro | --> output power + ||| < main flow |generator| control infrastructure ||| +---------+ ||| + vvv+ <----------------+ < flow returns to main stream vvvv
- vitaminj 13y ago
  This guy built a classic run-of-the-river scheme, i.e. the main stream is not dammed. He built an intake channel off the main stream that flows into a forebay, where the penstock and piping system is installed. He also talks about putting a trash filter in the forebay, again a pretty standard thing to do. Run-of-the-river schemes probably have the lowest impact on the local environment. I'd imagine very few fish would go into the intake channel.
ctdonath 13y ago
Dirty little secret: ALL "green/clean" power has a negative impact on the local environment. With care you can shave percentages off instead of commandeering the energy source totally to the detriment of the micro-ecosystem relying on it, but don't fall for the attractive implication that there is no environmental impact on natural ecosystems. Seems he minimized the impact on fish by redirecting just a fraction of the stream, about as low-impact as any power source could be.
hcarvalhoalves 13y ago
I doubt there is fish to being with. The place's too steep, the surroundings suggests it's high altitude.

jimktrains2 13y ago

Couldn't one figure out how to divert enough stream water and the fish through their natural environment?

kelvin0 13y ago

The fish go into the pipe, then get into a 'special' chamber. Some are eaten, others used as compost. Can't be any greener ;-)

WestCoastJustin 13y ago

> didn't he destroy the natural ecosystem of the stream, from the perspective of fish In this case, maybe, but it doesn't show where they are getting the water from, upstream. The system typically looks like the following. You build a dam, have a grate (to stop sticks/fish/branches/etc) from entering your piping system. You then divert a small % of the flow into your piping which connects to the generator, then return the flow to the main stream. It is in your best interest to stop objects (other than water) from entering the piping system, as it could clog up, or damage the turbine blades. So, you want to invest in the proper grating system upstream. I guess my point is, the by product of protecting your piping from clogs and damage to turbine blades, you are helping to preserve the natural ecosystem! A win-win. |||| < stream vvvv +--------+ | man | | made | < grate + pipe to divert % of flow | dam +>>>-----------\ +--------+ \ < going downhill to increase pressure ||| +--\------+ ||| | hydro | --> output power + ||| < main flow |generator| control infrastructure ||| +---------+ ||| + vvv+ <----------------+ < flow returns to main stream vvvv

vitaminj 13y ago
This guy built a classic run-of-the-river scheme, i.e. the main stream is not dammed. He built an intake channel off the main stream that flows into a forebay, where the penstock and piping system is installed. He also talks about putting a trash filter in the forebay, again a pretty standard thing to do. Run-of-the-river schemes probably have the lowest impact on the local environment. I'd imagine very few fish would go into the intake channel.

ctdonath 13y ago

Dirty little secret: ALL "green/clean" power has a negative impact on the local environment. With care you can shave percentages off instead of commandeering the energy source totally to the detriment of the micro-ecosystem relying on it, but don't fall for the attractive implication that there is no environmental impact on natural ecosystems. Seems he minimized the impact on fish by redirecting just a fraction of the stream, about as low-impact as any power source could be.

hcarvalhoalves 13y ago

I doubt there is fish to being with. The place's too steep, the surroundings suggests it's high altitude.