Hydraulic power

Ancient civilizations used rivers to drive numerous mechanisms such as grain mills. With the advent of turbine technologies. Man discovered a way to convert kinetic energy in moving water to mechanical power.

Hydraulic power, Hydropower is power that is derived from the force or energy of moving water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Prior to the widespread availability of commercial eclectic power, hydropower was used for irrigation, and operation of various machines, such as watermills, textile machines, sawmills, dock cranes, and domestic lifts.

Another mothered used a tromp to produce compressed air from falling water, which could then be used to power other machinery at a distance from the water.

In hydrology, hydropower is manifested in the force of the water on the riverbed and banks of a river. It is particularly powerful when the river is in flood. The force of the water results in the removal of sediment and other materials from the river bed and banks of the river, causing erosion and other alterations.

Hydropower is cheap, non-polluting. And many small facilities (less than 30MW) are considered renewable energy sources. Unlike other sources of energy like nuclear power, the costs of large scale plants is declining because the facilities have been paid for by federal or state projects. Dams and reservoirs also provide recreational opportunities. Flood control, irrigation, refuges for wildlife, water supply, and transportation.

In the US the first hydropower plant was built in 1880 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Large scale construction of these power plants occurred in the 1930s and 40s as a part of Franklin D Roosevelt’s New Deal” programs. These efforts were intended to provide electricity to remote areas of the country where private utility companies were absent. Since rivers are abundant, hydroelectricity is widely used by both rural and urban settlements.

To date US has developed only 20% of its hydropower potential. Although hydropower is non-polluting construction of new facilities is highly controversial because of environmental and social impacts. The best location for plants is often in mountainous or rainy areas where ecosystems are fragile and often protected. Yet, new hydropower projects do not necessarily require construction since only 2400 of 80000 dams are used for this type of energy generation. New technology along with upgrades in current plants can increase efficiency and create energy sources without disrupting more lands.