Bonneville Power to Wind Generators -- Shut Down, and You Get Free Power

The Bonneville Power Administration says it is preparing to sharply reduce the region's wind generators' output during extreme high water flows in the Columbia River system as a last resort to assure that hydropower dam operations do not threaten protected fish populations.

...

If the region's grid is carrying high power output from wind generators at a time when the river flow is extremely high, the combination of wind power and hydropower would exceed the demand for electricity, in expected scenarios.

BPA says in those circumstances, it would have to curtail wind generation or increase water flows over hydro dam spillways, bypassing dam generators. But excessive flows over spillways can raise nitrogen levels in the water below the dams, violating federal regulations that protect salmon and other fish species.

http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2011/02/25/25climatewire-bonneville-power-to-wind-generators-shut-dow-22723.html

Why would this be? Would free-falling water on the spillways scrub nitrogen out of the atmosphere? It doesn't say in the article.

That's a guess.

:(

...that this is a concern!

This is e/e! :o

...to take into consideration stuff like this. It's all "optimal energy use" type crap, best case scenarios and the like. But reality doesn't work like that.

and you can't store the power. It's been a wet year. The rivers will be high. The grid can't pass the power on to the Bay area, for example.

(i.e., "extremely high water flows" rather than "everyday water flows")

I noted that the article said the BPA will also be paying the coal-fired
power stations a premium to shut down along with the wind farms when it
becomes necessary.

Unless they are pulling a fast one with the gas-fired "peakers" then that
implies that the demand of the entire grid region can be satisfied by the
output of the various hydro plants during those conditions.

Good going guys!

:wow: