Hydroelectric Energy

Hydropower is the process of generating electricity from the movement of water. It is considered a renewable resource because the cycle of rain, water collection, water release, and evaporation is endless. There are several different types of hydroelectric facilities. Impoundment facilities use a dam to store water, and then release the water through turbines to meet electricity demands. Diversion projects channel water through a canal. In pumped storage water is pumped from a lower reservoir to an upper reservoir so that it can be released through turbines when demand for electricity is high. All three systems create electricity by harnessing the power of water flowing downstream. There are approximately 2,400 dams that produce electricity in the United States.

Installed capacity of hydropower in the United States today is 95 GW. Hydropower provides about 60% of the country’s total renewable electricity generation capability, though this percentage will decline as new renewable technologies are developed and expanded. For a variety of environmental and regulatory reasons, the number of hydropower facilities in the United States is not expected to increase.

Sources:

• DOE’s Department of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
• Energy Information Agency
• Purdue University’s State Utility Forecasting Group Study