Brought to you by Ali, George, & Mohammed Hydroelectric Energy Brought to you by Ali, George, & Mohammed

History Nearly 2000 years ago the Greeks used water wheels to grind wheat into flour - In the 1700's, hydropower was broadly used for milling of lumber and grain and for pumping irrigation water - Appleton, Wisconsin became the first operational hydroelectric generating station in the United States, in 1882, producing 12.5 kilowatts (kW) of power

Renewable vs. Non-Renewable Hydroelectric – Renewable Why? Because water is always flowing due to gravity. And it uses the earths water cycle to generate electricity. Water has been around for million of years. Used and reused for a long period of time.

Primary Uses ELECTRICITY!!!

Hydroelectricity Source Hydroelectricity is produced by the flow of water from precipitation from the water cycle and is pulled downstream towards the ocean, though dams by way of gravity. Hydroelectricity is the conversion of kinetic energy (flow of water) into Electric (Conduction of turbine)

Advantages to hydroelectric power: Fuel is not burned so there is minimal pollution Water to run the power plant is provided free by nature Hydropower plays a major role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions Relatively low operations and maintenance costs The technology is reliable and proven over time It's renewable - rainfall renews the water in the reservoir, so the fuel is almost always there Water can be stored, waiting to be used in peak times

Disadvantages to hydroelectric power: High investment costs Hydrology dependent (precipitation) In some cases, flooding of land and wildlife habitat In some cases, loss or modification of fish habitat In some cases, changes in reservoir and stream water quality In some cases, displacement of local populations.

Pollution: Methane is produced from the decompositions of plants due to the formation of reservoirs that flood river valleys. Hydroelectric dams do not burn any fuel regularly, so there is not a whole lot of pollution beside ecological waste like dead plants, fish, and sediment from land erosion from the formation of the reservoir.

World Use Hydropower is the most important and widely-used renewable source of energy. Hydropower represents 19% of total electricity production. China is the largest producer of hydroelectricity, followed by Canada, Brazil, and the United States Approximately two-thirds of the economically feasible potential remains to be developed. Untapped hydro resources are still abundant in Latin America, Central Africa, India and China. One of the world's largest hydro plants is at Three Gorges on China's Yangtze River The biggest hydro plant in the United States is located at the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River in northern Washington. Hydropower is the cheapest way to generate electricity today. It's a clean fuel source that is renewable yearly by snow and rainfall.

Hydroelectric Use in the World

News Brazil generates roughly 80% of tis electricity from the hydropower plants. Lack of rain in recent months have caused blackouts and sweltering heat weeks. Severe droughts have led to decrease in water inflow to Hydroelectric power industries over the past few years, limiting the ability to generate electricity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj4dZM4SIls

Sources http://water.usgs.gov/edu/wuhy.html http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/encyclopedia/hydroelectric-energy/?ar_a=1 Georges Brains http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/our-energy-choices/renewable-energy/how-hydroelectric-energy.html http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-and-you/affect/hydro.html http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/tech/hydropower**