Wickiup Dam Hydropower Project Progresses

Hydropower Proposal Moves Forward
Ariel Wesler – KOHD.com News – December 3, 2008

It’s a project that could eventually generate enough electricity to power 2,000 homes in southern Deschutes County. Environmental specialists from Symbiotics met with representatives from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and other local agencies to lay out preliminary plans to determine what affect the new structure could have on its surroundings. The project would add on a small power facility next to the existing Wickiup Dam.
 
“It is run of river, so there’ll be no fluctuations in reservoir levels or river flows below the Deschutes River to generate power,” said Symbiotics Environmental Specialist Erik Steimle.
 
“Fish passage is a huge issue and so is maintaining water quality below the project,” said Jack Williamson of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
 
Symbiotics says it wants to divert the water released from the dam through turbines to generate electricity.  It hopes input to the environmental impact study from the various agencies will help keep the project as minimally invasive as possible.
 
“It also aids us in developing a project that is low impact certifiable,” Steimle said.
 
A low impact rating would allow them to sell the power for money because it’s more environmentally friendly. The facility could also provide additional power during the hot summer months.
 
“Cleaner energy is a great idea for the younger generation, my grandkids, their kids and so on, but i don’t see where it’s going to help us older folks at all,” said La Pine Resident Dan Luker.
 
He is one of many in southern Deschutes County on a fixed income, and wouldn’t be able to afford increased power rates. The project’s total cost is estimated at 16 million dollars and if approved, would be in place by 2012.
 
Symbiotics held a public meeting in Bend and La Pine back in August to get community feedback. The company is also working with mid state electric in southern Deschutes County to discuss rates and how the power would be distributed.

Wickiup Dam Hydro Update

While CO Renewable considers the idea of exploring the utilization of existing dams for renewable hydroelectric generation one should consider all of the issues including, along with environmental issues, the actual cost to get the electricity to the end user.  Fortunately the need to upgrade seven miles of transmission lines from the dam to the main power grid is addressed in this article but the estimated costs of such an upgrade were not disclosed.

Also: The Bulletin is not really reporting anything new.  In February of this year Symbiotics Energy LLC proposed this idea as reported on this blog. 

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Wickiup Dam could see a hydroelectric upgrade
By Kate Ramsayer - The Bulletin - September 4, 2008

At the base of Wickiup Dam, where water flows out of the reservoir and into the Deschutes River, a company hopes to tap the running water to generate electricity.

Instead of going through a spillway, the water released from the dam would be diverted and used to turn a turbine, generating enough electricity to power more than 2,000 homes, said Erik Steimle, director of environmental compliance with Symbiotics, which is proposing the project. And once the water rotated the turbines, it would flow into the Deschutes.

Wickiup Dam Small Hydro Project Proposed

Wickiup Dam Small Hydro Project Proposed
February 18, 2008

Symbiotics LLC, a company established in 2001 to focus on hydroelectric power development in the western United States, is exploring the possibility of generating hydroelectric power from Wickiup Reservoir dam.  Symbiotics has applied for a permit to begin an environmental impact study.

The company is proposing building a powerhouse with two turbines that would annually generate 21 gigawatt hours of output. A general rule of thumb is that a gigawatt hour typically supplies about 250 homes, so the plant could power about 5,200 Central Oregon homes each year.

Symbiotics wants to retrofit the Wickiup dam with a run of river hydroelectric dam.  That means it would not interrupt the flow of water, but would manipulate the current flow.  If everything goes their way, construction could begin in three years.

Central Oregon Irrigation District Juniper Ridge Hydropower Solicitation

Irrigation canals in Central Oregon are now being looked at as more than just a way to distribute water from the Deschutes River to farmers and ranchers.  Now days, with energy costs rising and the desirability or renewable energy sources, the power of water rushing through the canals is looked at as a source of power and revenue.  The Swalley Irrigation District may have a 1 MW plant on line by April 2009, and Central Oregon Irrigation District’s 3.7 MW plant, reported on below,  is looking at May 2010 for completion date. Both irrigation-based hydro power plants will be located north of Bend.

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Open Solicitation Juniper Ridge 3.27 MW Hydropower
January 23, 2008

Summary:

Central Oregon Irrigation District (COID) proposes to install a hydropower project totaling 3.27 megawatts (MW) approximately seven miles north of downtown Bend. The project is expected to be completed in May, 2010. 

Central Oregon Irrigation Districts Adopt Hydro Power

Swalley Irrigation District has decided to join Central Oregon Irrigation Districtin the production of electricity via hydropower but the North Unit Irrigation District has chosen not to – for now.

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Irrigation district taking new role as power supplier

By Keith Chu – The Bulletin - December 6, 2004

When engineers presented Swalley Irrigation District Manager Jan Lee with their plans to pipe the first 5.1 miles of the Swalley Canal, they told her there was one problem: When the pipe ended, water would shoot several feet at a dangerously fast speed, unless something was done to slow it down.

The district had two options, according to Lee. It could build an expensive concrete barrier to prevent the water from injuring passers-by.  Or it could construct a potentially lucrative $400,000 hydropower plant, which would use the fast-moving spray to turn a turbine and generate up to one megawatt of electricity.

By choosing the latter option, Swalley is poised to take on a much different role from its stated mission of delivering water. The irrigation district will essentially also become a power utility.

Swalley isn’t the first local irrigation district to go into the power business. The Central Oregon Irrigation District (COID) already has a hydro plant operating within Bend’s city limits and plans to build another plant within a few years.