Effects of the Changing Climate on Hydropower Production in the Sacramento River Watershed and California's Electricity Prices

Effects of the Changing Climate on Hydropower Production in the Sacramento River Watershed and California's Electricity Prices PDF Author: Daniel Fucik
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : California
Languages : en
Pages : 162

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Book Description
Historically, hydropower is the largest renewable energy source. However, as it is strongly climate dependent, the current climate change is altering the generating conditions. The watershed of the Sacramento River in California houses the greatest concentration of hydropower plants in all of the United States. As such, it generates about 10 percent of all instate-produced electricity. This study examines the changes of climatic conditions within the watershed, as well as its effects on hydropower generation in this region. Changes — decrease in this case — in electricity supply can lead to an increase of electricity prices. It was found that the watershed’s significance in California’s electricity mix indeed decreased, though climate change is only one reason for this development. The other reason, next to the factual decrease in hydropower generation due to altered climatic conditions, is the large and rapid increase in solar and wind energy generating facilities. Despite the size and electricity generating capacity within the watershed, the change in climate and to it related change in hydropower generation did not have a significant effect on the state’s electricity prices.

Effects of the Changing Climate on Hydropower Production in the Sacramento River Watershed and California's Electricity Prices

Effects of the Changing Climate on Hydropower Production in the Sacramento River Watershed and California's Electricity Prices PDF Author: Daniel Fucik
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : California
Languages : en
Pages : 162

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Book Description
Historically, hydropower is the largest renewable energy source. However, as it is strongly climate dependent, the current climate change is altering the generating conditions. The watershed of the Sacramento River in California houses the greatest concentration of hydropower plants in all of the United States. As such, it generates about 10 percent of all instate-produced electricity. This study examines the changes of climatic conditions within the watershed, as well as its effects on hydropower generation in this region. Changes — decrease in this case — in electricity supply can lead to an increase of electricity prices. It was found that the watershed’s significance in California’s electricity mix indeed decreased, though climate change is only one reason for this development. The other reason, next to the factual decrease in hydropower generation due to altered climatic conditions, is the large and rapid increase in solar and wind energy generating facilities. Despite the size and electricity generating capacity within the watershed, the change in climate and to it related change in hydropower generation did not have a significant effect on the state’s electricity prices.

Potential Changes in Hydropower Production from Global Climate Change in California and the Western United States

Potential Changes in Hydropower Production from Global Climate Change in California and the Western United States PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 70

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Impact of Climate Change on Hydropower Production in Sacramento River Hydrologic Region

Impact of Climate Change on Hydropower Production in Sacramento River Hydrologic Region PDF Author: Younis M. Elmabrok
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 106

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Book Description
California has the most extensive water supply systems in the country. California reservoirs, more than 1000 reservoirs, play a major role in meeting the state's water demand (ACWA, 2013). These reservoirs require careful planning and management in order to achieve the optimal balance between different demand sectors. Some of these reservoirs contribute to the state's power supply through different hydropower plants. Beside some hydraulic and design parameters, the amount of produced hydropower is determined by amount of released water and the available storage. The amount of released water from any reservoir is a function of many factors, such as: climate, precipitation and inflows, demands and environmental requirements downstream. This study examines the implication of Climate Change and Warming on Hydropower production in Sacramento River hydrological region. A simulation model of the study area is built using Water Elevation and Planning System (WEAP). Three main reservoirs for hydropower generation in the study area were included: Shasta Reservoir, Oroville Reservoir, and Folsom Reservoir. Snowpack in west upper slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains plays a major role in the hydrology of Sacramento River basin. Studies, (Franco et al. 2011) and (Rheinheimer et al. 2014), have shown a possible increase in the California's air temperature from 1.5 oC to 6 oC, with an expected greater impact on the upper Sierra Nevada Mountains. To assess the impact of such possible increase in air temperature, three warming scenarios were developed. The historical climate data (1964-2014) was collected for each catchment. Then for future projections (2014-2064), three air temperature increase scenarios were developed. The scenarios are 0 oC (no change, for comparison), 2 oC, 4 oC and 6 oC. Air temperature was the only parameter changed, other parameters such as precipitation remained unchanged. The result obtained from the model shows that the increase in air temperature can yield a considerable change in hydropower production. Under 6 oC increase scenario, the reduction in the total hydropower supply over the 50 years (2015-2064) was 9.43% for Shasta, 6.76% Oroville, and 6.44% for Folsom reservoir.

Climate Change Effects on the High-elevation Hydropower System with Consideration of Warming Impacts on Electricity Demand and Pricing

Climate Change Effects on the High-elevation Hydropower System with Consideration of Warming Impacts on Electricity Demand and Pricing PDF Author: Marion Guegan
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 106

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Potential Impacts of Climate Change on California's Energy Infrastructure and Identification of Adaptation Measures

Potential Impacts of Climate Change on California's Energy Infrastructure and Identification of Adaptation Measures PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 26

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Climate Change Impacts on the Operation of Two High-elevation Hydropower Systems in California

Climate Change Impacts on the Operation of Two High-elevation Hydropower Systems in California PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : California
Languages : en
Pages : 112

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Climate Change Impacts on Generation of Wind, Solar, and Hydropower in California

Climate Change Impacts on Generation of Wind, Solar, and Hydropower in California PDF Author: Phillip B. Duffy
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 60

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Water and Energy Sector Vulnerability to Climate Warming in the Sierra Nevada

Water and Energy Sector Vulnerability to Climate Warming in the Sierra Nevada PDF Author: David E. Rheinheimer
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 76

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Climate Change Effects on High-elevation Hydropower System in California

Climate Change Effects on High-elevation Hydropower System in California PDF Author: Kaveh Madani Larijani
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781109662054
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The high-elevation hydropower system in California, composed of more than 150 hydropower plants and regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), supplies 74 percent of in-state hydropower. The system has modest reservoir capacities and has been designed to take advantage of snowpack. The expected shift of runoff peak from spring to winter as a result of climate warming, resulting in snowpack reduction and earlier snowmelt, might have important effects on hydropower operations. Estimation of climate warming effects on such a large system by conventional simulation or optimization methods would be tedious and expensive. This dissertation presents a novel approach for modeling large hydropower systems. Conservation of energy and energy flows are used as the basis for modeling high-elevation high-head hydropower systems in California. The unusual energy basis for reservoir modeling allows for development of hydropower operations models to estimate large-scale system behavior without the expense and time needed to develop traditional streamflow and reservoir volume-based models in absence of storage and release capacity, penstock head, and efficiency information. An Energy-Based Hydropower Optimization Model (EBHOM) is developed to facilitate a practical climate change study based on the historical generation data high-elevation hydropower plants in California. Employing recent historical hourly energy prices, energy generation in California is explored for three climate warming scenarios (dry warming, wet warming, and warming-only) over 14 years, representing a range of hydrologic conditions. Currently, the high-elevation hydropower plants in California have to renew their FERC licenses. A method based on cooperative game theory is developed to explore FERC relicensing process, in which dam owners negotiate over the available instream water with other interest groups downstream. It is discussed how the lack of incentive for cooperation results in long delay in FERC relicensing in practice and argued how climate change may provide an incentive for cooperation among the parties to hasten the relicensing. An "adaptive FERC license" framework is proposed, to improve the performance and adaptability of the system to future changes with no cost to the FERC, in face of uncertainty about future hydrological and ecological conditions.

The Potential Effects of Global Climate Change on the United States

The Potential Effects of Global Climate Change on the United States PDF Author: Joel B. Smith
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Climatic changes
Languages : en
Pages : 472

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Book Description