The Actual Worth Of Electrifying Non-Powered Dams

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New methodological strategy demonstrates easy methods to assess the financial worth, together with non-traditional worth streams, of changing non-powered dams to hydroelectric services

Hydropower is a key supply of renewable vitality, however solely about 3 % of the prevailing dams in america generate electrical energy—the remainder are non-powered dams (NPDs). Whereas some NPDs are appropriate for conversion to power-generating services, few have been retrofitted within the final 20 years because of the complexity and considerations about  long-term return on funding. To assist overcome a few of these obstacles, researchers at Pacific Northwest Nationwide Laboratory (PNNL) developed an strategy to calculate the financial worth of a transformed NPD, together with non-traditional worth streams that aren’t normally captured in financial valuations.

“Our strategy supplies a holistic have a look at the potential financial advantages of non-powered dam conversion to equip communities and builders with as a lot data as doable when contemplating retrofits,” defined PNNL analysis economist and undertaking lead Sarah Barrows.

Capturing the worth of non-market gadgets

The potential advantages of a power-generating dam go far past the direct impacts on the ability grid—additionally they embody non-market gadgets. For instance, retrofitting an NPD would possibly enhance leisure entry to the world by means of the addition of fishing platforms and boat entry, or allow the expansion of close by energy-intensive industries—each potential non-market impacts. Estimating the total magnitude of potential advantages from NPD-conversion requires placing a financial worth on direct and oblique advantages alike, even when they don’t seem to be remunerated to the undertaking proprietor.

“Though oblique advantages and worth streams aren’t normally included in financial assessments, they do have an effect on the whole financial affect of a dam—and incorporating these values may have an effect on selections about NPD retrofits,” stated PNNL economist and report co-author Kyle Wilson.

To place values on non-market gadgets and impacts, the analysis workforce developed a catalog of worth streams related to powering up an NPD, and in a companion report, detailed easy methods to quantify non-traditional worth streams at particular person websites contemplating NPD conversions. The report features a case research demonstrating easy methods to use this strategy to quantify oblique worth streams on the Allegheny River Lock and Dam 2 in Pennsylvania, which at the moment has a proposed retrofit within the allowing course of.

“We estimated that the annual worth of deliberate retrofit upgrades to recreation alone would vary from tens to lots of of 1000’s of {dollars}—a major financial worth that isn’t accounted for in normal valuations,” stated Mark Weimar, PNNL chief economist and report co-author.

Collectively, the catalog and report set up a constant strategy to catalog worth streams, establish affected neighborhood members and potential impacts, discover results of various applied sciences and configurations on worth streams, and supply strategies and metrics to quantify non-market worth streams.

Supporting knowledgeable selections

These instruments assist knowledgeable conversations between neighborhood members, builders, and decision-makers on the lookout for economically viable paths to retrofit an NPD. Placing a quantity on the non-traditional worth streams of a non-powered dam conversion supplies a method to embody these non-monetary companies throughout undertaking planning and growth.

This strategy may also help builders and communities think about and estimate the non-market impacts of their tasks and broaden the dialog round retrofitting NPDs—hopefully spurring future growth,” stated Rajiv Prasad, PNNL Earth scientist and co-author. “Understanding and quantifying all of the impacts to communities, the surroundings, and the grid from NPD conversion may also help allow decision-makers discover methods to maneuver helpful retrofit tasks ahead.”

To entry the toolkit and be taught extra about accessible assets to assist NPD conversion planning, go to the undertaking website. The report, Cataloging and Quantifying Worth Streams from Non-Powered Dam Conversion, was authored by PNNL’s Sarah Barrows, Kyle Wilson, Mark Weimar, and Rajiv Prasad. This analysis was supported as a seedling undertaking by the Division of Vitality’s Water Energy Applied sciences Workplace.

By Alexandra Freibott, PNNL. Courtesy of Division of Vitality