Hydroelectricity Facts

There are a very few sources of energy, which are environment friendly and hydroelectricity is one of them. It is absolutely imperative for us to be very careful with the energy source that we choose. Although, there are some disadvantages of using hydroelectricity (which are very few by the way), they are very less compared to disadvantages of other sources of energy. Besides, there are overwhelming number of advantages as well. Read the following article on hydroelectricity facts to know various aspects of hydroelectricity as well as some curious facts

Hydroelectricity History
Waterwheels were built since time immemorial. Romans and Egyptians and many other civilizations have known to use it, but the first waterwheel that produced electricity was built in 1882 in United States of America. Hydroelectricity had so many advantages, that soon hydroelectric dams started springing up all over United States (that includes Niagara Falls as well). In 1911, the construction of the Roosevelt dam was completed (this construction was the largest rock masonry in the world then). But the geographic knowledge of blocking the rivers was so limited that rivers did maintain their seasonal flow. Yet, the need for hydro electricity was very large, and they soon started constructing dams that blocked entire rivers basins. Since then hydro electric power has been a major source of electricity.

Hydroelectric Power Generation
It is a commonly known fact that energy can only be converted from one form to another. In thermal power plant, coal (or any other fossil fuel) is burnt to produce electricity. In hydroelectric power plant, the amount of water before generation of electricity remains the same after the generation. What then is the source of energy in hydroelectric dams? The answer to this question is gravitational force. The hydroelectric dams convert the gravitational force (excreted by falling water) into electricity.

Hydroelectricity Pros and Cons
The following are the hydroelectricity pros and cons.

The advantages

• The major advantage of hydroelectricity is that it is generated from a clean source (gravity as explained before).
• The economics involved in hydroelectricity are nearly immune to prices of crude oil. This renders hydroelectricity to be very cheaply created.
• The hydroelectric dams are one of the major sources of running water
• The green house emissions are also greatly reduced. (This only happens indirectly, but a fact none the less.)
• Water sports, aquaculture, tourism etc are some of the other benefits

The disadvantages

• What if the dam fails? The dam failures have been the most costly failures till date. The water that over flows from the dam causes major floods and the residents living in that path are in mortal peril.
• The areas where these dams are located, their ecosystems are affected to a great extent. Dams mean flooding of water in the area, where it is obstructed. In most of the cases it has been changed/damaged permanently.
• Hydroelectric dams, more or less, demand very big reservoirs. The population has to be relocated in such areas.

Intriguing Facts About Hydroelectric Power
The following are some well known facts about hydroelectric energy.

• The hydroelectric dams provide flood control along with electricity
• Hydro-power is the worlds biggest renewable energy source.
• Hover dam (which was constructed in 1936) is even visible from space.
• About 20% of worlds electricity needs are met through hydroelectric power generation.
• China is the leading producer of electricity. United States is at fourth position.
• Australia has a hydroelectric power station working since 1885.
• Only fifteen percent of electricity used by the state of California comes from hydroelectric dams. State of California is B.T.W. one the largest consumers of electricity around the world.
• Modern hydroelectric power stations tend to recover their construction cost in a matter of eight to ten years. The cost incurred is simply operational once.

From bottom of my heart, I really hope that my article (even though, it is written in a factual tone), generates some awareness about the atrocities impinged on our mother nature. The entire reason for me to write this article on 'Hydroelectricity Facts' is to make an appeal to mankind, for using more clean and renewable resources; so that other beings and our own future generations on this cradle known as earth, will have a fighting chance of a normal life in future.