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Assessing Hydroelectric Power's Impact

Hydroelectric power plants provide reliable electricity but also have environmental impacts. They destroy wildlife habitats and ecosystems as the reservoirs flood forests and the stagnant water contains high sediment levels and less dissolved oxygen, killing many aquatic animals. The turbine blades also kill fish. Additionally, the power plants emit greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane that contribute to global warming, especially in tropical areas. While hydroelectric power has advantages over other energy sources like reliable output and cleaner fuel compared to fossil fuels, it also has drawbacks like destroying farmland and ecosystems and affecting river flows.

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53 views1 page

Assessing Hydroelectric Power's Impact

Hydroelectric power plants provide reliable electricity but also have environmental impacts. They destroy wildlife habitats and ecosystems as the reservoirs flood forests and the stagnant water contains high sediment levels and less dissolved oxygen, killing many aquatic animals. The turbine blades also kill fish. Additionally, the power plants emit greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane that contribute to global warming, especially in tropical areas. While hydroelectric power has advantages over other energy sources like reliable output and cleaner fuel compared to fossil fuels, it also has drawbacks like destroying farmland and ecosystems and affecting river flows.

Uploaded by

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Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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How do you assess the environmental impact of this power plant?

In this continuously changing world, nature is rapidly set aside to give way for
vast structures such as the hydroelectric power plant. Take for example the Hoover
Dam in Nevada-Arizona. It is one of the largest hydroelectric power plants in the
world and gives electricity to the states of Arizona, Nevada, and California.
Nevertheless, no matter how great the hydroelectric power plant can generate
electricity for almost a whole country, its impact and negative consequences can
never be ruled out. Wildlife and forest ecosystems are being destroyed by the power
plants reservoir. The water contained in the power plant becomes stagnant and
includes higher amounts of sediments resulting to large numbers of dying aquatic
animals. Also, the amount of dissolved oxygen in the power plant reservoir is less
than that of normal flowing river making it harder for the animals to survive.
Moreover, the turbine blades installed in the water kill aquatic animals passing
through. Finally, the carbon dioxide and methane gases emitted by the power plant
can contribute to global warming especially in tropical places.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of this power plant as
compared to other type of energy sources?
Hydroelectric power plants are the most efficient sources of energy. Compared
with solar and wind sources of energy, the power output of a hydroelectric power
plant has the most reliable rate. As a renewable source of energy, this power plant
serves as the most utilized form of energy because natural resources do not get
depleted while generating large amounts of power and providing electricity to many
parts of the world. Since the source of energy is water, it produces cleaner fuel unlike
power plants burning fossil fuels such as coals, oil, and natural gas. Its reservoir
water can also be used by irrigation systems in nearby farmlands. As much as there
are several advantages when using hydroelectric power, there are also drawbacks
though only minimal compared to other types of energy sources. For one, it destroys
farmlands and changes the courses of river flow. It also drastically affects the
ecosystems near the power plant that causes the death of many aquatic organisms in
the area. In general, hydroelectric power plants can be very helpful in our everyday
lives yet it can be also devastating for the environment.

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