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Hydro facility planned  

Project could help improve energy supply 

By TY BEAVER
H&N Staff Writer

October 14, 2009

 

     Even though the Klamath Irrigation District isn’t looking to offset its own power costs with its proposed A Canal hydroelectric project, those working to promote renewable energy say such projects go a long way toward improving the country’s energy supply.

 

   Dan Golden, chairman of Klamath County’s Renewable Energy Task Force, said it makes sense to use   the canals to produce hydropower, already a green energy source, as they have limited use as wildlife habitat and are easier to control than a generating source such as a wind turbine.

 

   Environment

 

   The project also is in line with the movement toward energy sources that don’t impact the environment. Some cities are looking to harness methane from wastewater treatment for energy generation.

 

   A refinement of hydroelectric power is hydrokinetic energy generation, produced when a device with a turbine is imbedded in a riverbed and free flowing water powers the turbine, eliminating the need for a dam and reservoir.

 

   Mary Grainey of the Oregon Water Resources Department said the city of Gresham is pursuing a hydroelectric project that would make use of the water expelled from its wastewater treatment facility.

 

   Betty Riley, executive director of South Central Oregon Economic Development District and a member of Team Energy Klamath, said the Klamath Irrigation District’s project is similar to projects she and others are pushing in the region.

 

   She said that a single project won’t completely of fset cur rent energy needs and costs, but adds up when combined with other renewable energies such as solar.

 

   “It is a piece of the puzzle,” she said.

 

Side Bar

 

   Submitting comments  

 

   A public hearing on a proposal to build a hydroelectric facility on the A Canal will be at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 21 at the Klamath County Government Center.

 

   Those attending may comment on direct impacts, cumulative impacts with other and similar projects, and requests for additional studies.

 

   Written comments can be submitted to Oregon Water Resources Department until Oct. 30.

 

   Mary Grainey with Oregon Water Resources Department said the next step would be granting Klamath Irrigation District a preliminary permit to further study the project.

 

   It could be up to a year before a final application is filed and Klamath Irrigation District also must coordinate with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the agency that owns the canal.

 

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