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National Hydropower Day

Recognizing the resource's contributions to the electrical grid

National Hydropower Day 2022

Composite image by Jeffrey London | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

August 24, 2022

In celebration of National Hydropower Day, we invite you to explore PNNL's research supporting this clean, renewable energy source.

Hydropower and the Grid

An animation showing how hydropower can balance fluctuations in the grid power supply and demand, illustrated using a seesaw.
Hydropower can quickly ramp up to meet power demand, supporting a reliable, resilient grid. (Animation by Stephanie King | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

The Department of Energy’s HydroWIRES initiative is clarifying the evolving role of hydropower as part of a modern grid infrastructure to unlock its potential for optimizing grid operations. HydroWIRES has explored the role of hydropower in grid operations, including an analysis of hydropower’s value in different regions of the country, its contributions to grid reliability and resilience, and its role in long-duration energy storage.

A HydroWIRES report quantified hydropower’s contribution to grid stability, confirming that hydropower plays a pivotal role in a resilient grid. Hydropower can be quickly ramped up to support the grid when other power sources go out, which is becoming more and more important as outages from extreme weather alone have quadrupled in the last five years.

Monitoring Fish Passage Through Dams

Lab-on-a-Fish uses multiple sensors to wirelessly track location, heartbeat, tail movement, and even temperature of the surrounding environment. (Graphic by Michael Perkins | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)
Lab-on-a-Fish uses multiple sensors to wirelessly track location, heartbeat, tail movement, and even temperature of the surrounding environment. (Graphic by Michael Perkins | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

PNNL researchers have developed multiple sensors, acoustic tags, and receivers that are improving fish passage through hydropower dams to support healthy fish populations, resilient aquatic ecosystems, and clean energy. PNNL researchers have developed micro acoustic tags that can now be used to track eel and lamprey, a tiny biosensor—called Lab-on-a-Fish—that can track fish health and locations, and a wireless acoustic receiver that can be placed in previously inaccessible locations to provide hourly fish tracking information on fish location. The new acoustic receiver can even be used to deploy sensors that measure water quality conditions, providing information about the effects of climate change on fish and aquatic ecosystems.  

Supporting Small Hydropower Growth

Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory identified challenges to grid integration of small hydropower development projects and best practices to overcome them. 
Researchers at PNNL and Oak Ridge National Laboratory identified challenges to grid integration of small hydropower development projects and best practices to overcome them. (Photo by Alistair Macdonald | Shutterstock.com)

Not all hydroelectricity is generated by large dams. In fact, small hydropower projects—those that generate less than 20 megawatts (MW) of power—have been the predominant source of hydropower growth in the United States since the 2010s. However, small hydropower developers often face challenges plugging new projects into the electrical grid—a process called interconnection. To identify and help overcome these challenges, PNNL and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) reviewed the status of small hydropower interconnection across the United States in 2021. Their findings, including recommendations for best practices to make the interconnection process go smoothly, were recently shared in a series of four white papers. This work will help inform future small hydropower developments.

Outreach and Workforce Development in Hydropower

Salmon Summit

PNNL researchers are not only advancing hydropower research, they’re also active in outreach and workforce development efforts related to hydropower. During the annual Salmon Summit, fourth and fifth graders from across Eastern Washington raise fish as part of the Salmon in the Classroom curriculum. This spring, researchers from PNNL tagged and released 500 juvenile salmon into the Columbia River, while over 400 students participated in person and another 3,600 students across Washington State watched a live stream of the event. Researchers fielded questions about salmon, research, and careers in science.

Teachers and students share their experiences during the 2022 Salmon Summit, where Pacific Northwest National Laboratory researchers partnered with the Benton Conservation District to tag and release 500 juvenile salmon. (Video by Edward Pablo | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

Teacher-Scientist Partnership

Every summer, PNNL invites middle and high school science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) teachers from nearby communities to participate in professional development through a program called the Teacher-Scientist Partnership (TSP). Participants work with PNNL researchers and STEM education specialists to address real-world scientific challenges aligned with PNNL research and Washington State science and learning standards.

As part of this year’s Teacher-Scientist Partnership professional development program, educators tackled a challenge associated with fish passage and long-term monitoring of salmon populations in the Columbia River basin. (Photo by Liz Stephens | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory).
As part of this year’s Teacher-Scientist Partnership professional development program, educators tackled a challenge associated with fish passage and long-term monitoring of salmon populations in the Columbia River basin. (Photo by Liz Stephens | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory).

This year, PNNL partnered with the Education Services District 123 to present 12 upper elementary and middle school teachers from southeastern Washington with a challenge focused on long-term monitoring of salmon populations in the Columbia River Basin. The teachers worked with PNNL experts to familiarize themselves with research in this area, learn best practices for science communication, and hear about relevant career opportunities. At the end of the week, participants presented their recommended approaches to tackle the challenge, including methods to monitor salmon, data needs, and communication strategies to reach diverse stakeholders. 

According to one of the teacher participants, “My greatest take away from the TSP was the amount of careers involved with salmon migration. Students who have access to a multitude of options that really capitalize on their varied strengths. I am excited to interweave this into my lessons next school year.”

Fish Passage Conference

There were over 400 attendees at the PNNL-hosted International Fish Passage Conference in June 2022. (Photo by Andrea Starr | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)
There were over 400 attendees at the PNNL-hosted International Fish Passage Conference in June 2022. (Photo by Andrea Starr | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

Fish passage is a major area of research that strives to lessen the impact of hydropower dams on fish and support healthy fish populations. PNNL hosted the International Fish Passage Conference this June, which featured global innovations for next-generation fish passage technology, advanced research being done in the laboratory, and technology tested in nearby rivers. The annual international conference brought together topic experts, managers, stakeholders, and companies from around the world to discuss and address challenges in fish passage through the lens of engineering, biology, management, and society.

Tools for Fish Survival

PNNL and ORNL co-led DOE’s HydroPASSAGE project that generated new tools and information supporting fish survival through hydropower dams. Through HydroPASSAGE, researchers developed multiple tools—including the Hydropower Biological Evaluation Toolset (HBET), Biological Performance Assessment (BioPA), and autonomous Sensor Fish, to inform the design, operation, and biological impact of hydropower turbines to support fish passage. These tools are available for license.

The HydroPASSAGE project was dedicated to finding solutions to improve downstream fish passage conditions through turbines and other hydropower structures. (Video by Eric Francavilla | Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)

PNNL’s Aquatic Research Laboratory

Did you know that PNNL has a 7,400-square-foot laboratory that serves as home to 10-20 thousand fish at any given time? The facility enables research focused on the impacts of hydropower development and operation. Water is pumped in from the nearby Columbia River and is then heated or cooled to help rear various species of fish. Many of the fish are tagged and released. 

At the Aquatic Research Laboratory, PNNL scientists focus on monitoring and predicting the impacts of hydropower development and operation on water resources, supporting the nation’s ability to optimize power production while minimizing environmental effects. (Video by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)