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- #251
Even the Snowy relies on weather:
'As Australia's power crisis began to ramp up early this month, Snowy Hydro was called on to increase production.'
'But the hydro-electric generator remains significantly constrained by a surprising problem — too much water.
It's only one example of how weather extremes have deepened the nation's man-made power crisis.
Snowy Hydro's biggest power station is Tumut 3. At maximum output, it can generate 1,800 megawatts of electricity.
That's as much as a large coal-fired power station, but with zero emissions.'
'Generation from Tumut 3 Power Station is significantly constrained by the current storage levels in Blowering Reservoir and the release capacity of the Tumut River.'
"In order to meet the predicted energy demands in the coming days, it is possible Blowering Reservoir will fill and spill, potentially exceeding the Tumut River channel capacity.
"In this scenario, there is potential for the inundation of low-level causeways and water breaking out of the river channel onto agricultural land adjacent to the river."
Snowy Hydro's water problem shows how weather is a driver of our energy crisis
Weather extremes have deepened the man-made power crisis in ways that were hard to predict and at times even harder to imagine. Both Snowy Hydro and coal-fired power stations have been impacted by summer rains. And two weeks of extreme cold has only brought the power system closer to the edge.
www.abc.net.au
'As Australia's power crisis began to ramp up early this month, Snowy Hydro was called on to increase production.'
'But the hydro-electric generator remains significantly constrained by a surprising problem — too much water.
It's only one example of how weather extremes have deepened the nation's man-made power crisis.
Snowy Hydro's biggest power station is Tumut 3. At maximum output, it can generate 1,800 megawatts of electricity.
That's as much as a large coal-fired power station, but with zero emissions.'
'Generation from Tumut 3 Power Station is significantly constrained by the current storage levels in Blowering Reservoir and the release capacity of the Tumut River.'
"In order to meet the predicted energy demands in the coming days, it is possible Blowering Reservoir will fill and spill, potentially exceeding the Tumut River channel capacity.
"In this scenario, there is potential for the inundation of low-level causeways and water breaking out of the river channel onto agricultural land adjacent to the river."