$3B to turn Hoover Dam into a Massive Grid Battery?
Posted: Sun 29 Jul 2018, 09:47:56
Potentially using Lake Mead as a pumped storage facility could be done for $3B. There would of course be significant changes to the way water levels fluctuate downstream. The factoid that is the pink elephant in the room: Lake Mead has already been below full for the last 34 years due to drought conditions in the seven Western states that use the water downstream. If additional water were to be impounded for energy storage, it would have to come from somewhere, and pumping that much water from the Ogalalla Aquifer would cause it to shrink much faster than it does today. Also, the larger the lake surface, the more water is lost to evaporation due to the increased surface area.
Nicely written with some great animated images:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/07/24/business/energy-environment/hoover-dam-renewable-energy.html
Nicely written with some great animated images:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/07/24/business/energy-environment/hoover-dam-renewable-energy.html