1. ALPINE CONVENTION - Platform „Water Management in the Alps“
Hydropower – Restoration of Good status / GEP
Meeting EU Waterdirectors May 2010, Segovia
K. Schwaiger1,3, S. Müller; M. Pfaundler1,2, P. Dazio2, R. Mair3
1 Presidency of the Alpine Convention’s Platform on Water Management in the Alps, 2 Swiss Federal Office for the Environment, 3 Austrian Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management 1 1

2. Challenges (S)Hydropower plants in place:
- Often dating from decades ago
- Poor performance in hydropower generation
- Mostly without migration aids for fish
- Do not meet modern requirements for residual water
=> Main challenge: to restore good status / GEP
=> Inspiring Good Practice examples in place in MS
a) Legislative frame Switzerland
b) Refurbishment of (S)HPplants Upper Austria

3. Rehabilitation of the Swiss hydropower Plants
The situation
Degree of efficiency: 33%
100% would be: using “the potential height” of each
“raindrop which falls on the Swiss topography” until the frontier to the EU
Car motors: < 30%!
>90% of Swiss rivers are used for electricity prod.
60% of the used electricity is from hydropower

4. Plants with a power output > 10 MW

5. Withdrawal sites along rivers
……entailing residual water flow problems
Hydropower

6. Hydropower and Environmental Challenges in CH
Type I: River hydropower station
fish migration
Type II: (Pump) - Storage power station
Residual water flow
Hydropeaking

7. The recent and the new laws in general
maintain high production volume
maintain market orientiation
- peak load energy production
strenghten environmental friendly production:

8. The recent and the new laws in detail I
Fish migration (law in place since 1991)
focus today: modernisation and fish descent
measures will be financed from 2011
Residual water flow (law in place since 1991)
1.step: increase rwf without causing infringements of existing using rights until 2012
2. step: by establishing new using rights: full rwf according to the concrete numbers in l/s given in the law.

9. The recent and the new laws in detail II
Hydropeaking (put into force: Jan. 2011
1. only constructional and not operational measures
(e.g. by setting in place reservoir downstream for retention of peak flows)
2. Financing of the measures: to 100% „Through an electricity consumer tax“: a charge on the Swiss high voltage network of 0.07 Euro/kWh (ca. 35 Million Euro/y)
3. Time frame: 20 years (700 Million Euro)

10. Refurbishment of Hydropower plants
pro active approach of Upper Austria

11. Upper Austria : Initiative to refurbish Hydropower plants
What is the Challenge?
~ 850 hydrowpower plants (HPP) in place
~ 130 run-of-river HPP
~ 720 diversion HPP
8 storage HPP
Size classes of hydropower plants:
- 28 bigger 10 MW GWh/a
- 39 0,5 to 10 MW GWh/a
- ca. 790 under 0,5 MW ………. 150 GWh/a
Remediate high fragmentation of rivers
In many cases no residual water
No migration aids for fish
Increase HP production

12. Upper Austria : Initiative to refurbish Hydropower plants
Challenge until 2015:
~ 850 km (out of 4900 km) rivers: status to be improved step by step by 2015, focus on restoration of river continuity and residual water
Goals of first RBMP
restoration of river continuity
~ 270 transverse structures
~ 100 hydropower plants
Sufficient residual water to allow for migration of typical fish, to be enhanced further at later stage

13. Upper Austria : Initiative to refurbish Hydropower plants
Approaches in place:
Financial incentives for improving river continuity and river morphology (140 Mio Euro for first RBMP for entire Austria)
2.A Financial incentives for refurbishment of Hydropower Plants. Regional Initative with cornerstones:
Free advice by consultant (sort of feasibility study, goal: > 15% increase of energy output, costs covered by regional government)
Financial contribution (max. 25% of investment, max Eur)
2.B Prerequisite: Fish migration aid and residual water in place after refurbishment / modernisation of HPplant

14. Upper Austria : Initiative to refurbish Hydropower plants
Small HydroPP in Upper Austria
Green: HP refurbished
Red:extent of refurbishment coming close to a reconstruction

15. Upper Austria : Initiative to refurbish Hydropower plants
Results (since 2003):
Advice provided for 560 hydropower plants (out of 760)
240 concrete projects
202 hydropower plants already modernised / refurbished
45 Mio euros investments
Additional energy output: plus 40% (76 GWh/a; initial goal: > 15%)
Migration aids for fish in place
Minimum residual water in place
=> Win win situation for ecology and economy (energy, jobs – money remains nearly entirely in region)
=> High leverage effect of financial incentives

16. Thank you very much for your attention!