|
Become a friend of the Klamath Bucket Brigade All donations are tax deductible |
|
This Website is Dedicated to Alvin Alexander Cheyne January 10, 1921 - June 17, 2005 |
GovTrack.us is an independent tool to help the public research and track the activities in the U.S. Congress, promoting government transparency and civic education through novel uses of technology.
C Canal hydro project starts producing power
Facility will produce $250,000 worth of electricity annually
By JOEL ASCHBRENNER
H&N Staff Reporter
May 4, 2012
 |
|
H&N photo by Joel Aschbrenner Commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Michael Conner, right, and Klamath Irrigation District farmer Ross Fleming flip the switch on the district’s new C Canal hydroelectric project Thursday. |
The Klamath Irrigation District’s 1.1 megawatt C-Drop Hydroelectric Project started producing electricity Thursday.
U.S.
Bureau
of
Reclamation
Commissioner
Michael
Conner
said the
1.1
megawatt
facility
will
help
mitigate
the
rising
cost of
power
for
Klamath
Reclamation
Project
irrigators.
“We have to try to deal with that problem and this is a way to address those costs,” Connor said about the hydroelectric facility.
The facility, named the C-Drop Hydroelectric Project, is on the Klamath Irrigation District’s C Canal near the district headquarters in the Henley area. It diverts water through an electrical turbine as it falls from the A Canal to the C Canal.
The C-Drop can produce up to 3,000 megawatt-hours a year, enough energy to power about 113 homes. It is built at the same location as a hydroelectric facility that burned down more than 50 years ago.
About 50
irrigators,
federal
agents
and
local
officials
endured
chilly
May
winds
for the
dedication
of the
new
project.
There
was an
oversized
ribbon
cutting
and even
a
commemorative
coin
minted
for the
occasion.
More projects
Klamath County Commissioner Al Switzer said he hopes to see more hydroelectric facilities developed on canals and waterways around the Klamath Reclamation Project.
“We’ve had a lot of division in our agriculture community and this is something that will help bring our ag community back together,” he said.
The irrigation district will sell power back to the grid, with revenue increasing over the next 25 years as the district pays down the cost of building the facility.
“It’s
going to
take
some
time,”
said Ed
Bair, a
hay and
potato
farmer
and
member
of the
KID
board,
“but it
will pay
off.”
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, any copyrighted
material herein is distributed without profit or payment to those who have
expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit
research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml