Environmental Impacts on Local Ecosystems
- Alteration of Water Flow and Aquatic Habitats: Building reservoirs and dams changes the natural water flow, which can disrupt aquatic ecosystems by affecting fish migration patterns, water temperature, and sediment transport. This alteration can lead to habitat fragmentation and loss of biodiversity in aquatic environments.
- Water Resource Usage and Rights Conflicts: Closed-loop pumped storage systems can complicate water sourcing, potentially leading to disputes over water rights and pressure on aquatic resources. These issues can delay projects and result in adverse ecological effects related to water availability.
- Land Use and Habitat Disruption: The construction phase entails significant land disturbance due to excavation, concrete, steel, and cement use, often modifying landscapes and terrestrial habitats. This process can threaten local flora and fauna through habitat loss or fragmentation.
- Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Energy Footprint During Construction: While PHES has low operational emissions, the construction phase contributes environmental burdens mainly from material production and energy use. These impacts primarily stem from producing concrete and steel, which emit greenhouse gases and can affect local air quality.
- Comparative Sustainability of Different PHES Types: Traditional (conventional) pumped hydro plants generally have better economic and environmental performance due to scale economies but may have social and ecological drawbacks. Underground pumped hydro storage, such as using abandoned mines, may reduce surface land disturbance and have lesser social impacts, but involve different environmental trade-offs.
Summary
Pumped hydroelectric energy storage facilities provide valuable large-scale renewable energy storage but their construction can disrupt local ecosystems through changes in water flow, aquatic habitats, land use, and resource consumption. Mitigating these impacts involves careful site selection, consideration of water rights, minimizing landscape alterations, and exploring alternatives like underground storage to reduce ecological footprint. Over time, increasing grid renewables and operational efficiencies can further reduce PHES environmental impacts.
This balanced view highlights that while PHES is a crucial tool for clean energy, its ecological effects during construction warrant thorough environmental assessment and sustainable planning.
Original article by NenPower, If reposted, please credit the source: https://nenpower.com/blog/how-does-the-construction-of-pumped-hydroelectric-energy-storage-facilities-affect-local-ecosystems/
