Hydropower projects present difficult environmental challenges. Key issues confronting the hydropower industry, often reflecting technology gaps in associated technologies, include fish injury and mortality from contact with turbines and other equipment, as well as changes to water quality and physical environment around these projects.[1] The hydropower industry is currently working to continually improve the design of hydro turbines systems, to balance environment, technical and economic conditions. Additionally, the DOE is working on R&D to help fishery biologists and turbine designer better understand the environmental impact of component design. To address these challenges, solutions under development include the “crash dummy fish” – whereby the Sensor Fish measures the physical stresses in a turbine passage and can be used instead of live fish to gather information; new improved products such as greaseless bearings; and a DOE sponsored computational fluid dynamics program that models potential fish behavior in the turbine passage.[2]
Research by Theresa Pipher
