FOZ DO IGUACU
Pre-reflection
Whatever the case may be to initially develop hydropower facilities, this endeavor can create some opportunities and many challenges, which differ from country to country. The decision of man to alter the landscape for the gains of the human population has sometimes placed the needs of the many before the needs of the few, creating environmental and social consequences that are not so easily remediated, if possible at all.
The Three Gorges Dam, located along the Yangtze River Basin in China, was constructed to control flooding in the region as well as the opportunity to generate clean energy to support the countries growing energy demands. One of the challenges engineers faced was the possibility of the concrete cracking because of the high temperatures, which caused it to dry far too quickly. Engineers also had to ensure the velocity of the water coming down from the slue gates would not crack the foundation of the dam and to address this problem the shoots were designed to arc the water instead of a downward direction. The Yangtze River being a major route of commerce, a ship lock was made that transported the cargo ships level by level until reaching the top of the dam. This process takes over 4 hours, and not being suitable for passenger ships, an additional system is currently being built with a travel time of about 36 minutes. One million people needed to be relocated from the area behind the dam where the reservoir was now to be located. The damming of the river causes silt that is brought about from the seasonal flooding to become trapped behind the dam; this consequence has led to fewer nutrients for farming making it necessary to utilize expensive fertilizers.
The purpose of constructing the Grand Coulee Dam was to address the need for development in the northwestern United States, specifically in Washington State. A man by the name of William M. Clapp advocated for an irrigation infrastructure that would be fed by the Columbia River and give the opportunity to change the Eastern Washington State region into something other than a backwater town. Initial challenges included financial constraints and the fact that even if the dam was successful and put on line, the population that currently resided there was considerably small with no great demand for most of the electricity the hydropower plant would inevitably produce. In order to create a reservoir necessary for the generation of electricity, land that had been settled by Native American tribes in the region would need to be submerged. With this loss of land also came loss of traditions inherently important to their cultural heritage. Diverting a river from its natural flow has environmental consequences and in the case of the Grand Coulee Dam, disruption of salmon spawning grounds that greatly decreased the population and in turn robbed the Native Americans of a food source but also altered the ecosystem of the area.
Before the Itaipu Dam could break ground, an agreement needed to be made between the Brazil and Paraguay whom have had previous border disputes, which sit on either sides of the Parana River. Other challenges that needed to be addressed was the land that would soon be transformed into a lake and would displace not only humans, but a large population of wildlife that inhabited the region as well as the disappearance of farmland and rainforest. Real estate evaluation was preformed and people were given compensation for their land. A biological survey was also conducted, and before the land was to be flooded, traps were set and more than 30,000 animals were relocated. Itaipu Dam is located in Foz Do Iguacu, and at the time it was being constructed a whole town was created to house the many workers and their families, providing them with services such as schools and hospitals. 24 million people are provided power from this one plant, and it is the largest dam when measured by output of electricity.
Whatever the case may be to initially develop hydropower facilities, this endeavor can create some opportunities and many challenges, which differ from country to country. The decision of man to alter the landscape for the gains of the human population has sometimes placed the needs of the many before the needs of the few, creating environmental and social consequences that are not so easily remediated, if possible at all.
The Three Gorges Dam, located along the Yangtze River Basin in China, was constructed to control flooding in the region as well as the opportunity to generate clean energy to support the countries growing energy demands. One of the challenges engineers faced was the possibility of the concrete cracking because of the high temperatures, which caused it to dry far too quickly. Engineers also had to ensure the velocity of the water coming down from the slue gates would not crack the foundation of the dam and to address this problem the shoots were designed to arc the water instead of a downward direction. The Yangtze River being a major route of commerce, a ship lock was made that transported the cargo ships level by level until reaching the top of the dam. This process takes over 4 hours, and not being suitable for passenger ships, an additional system is currently being built with a travel time of about 36 minutes. One million people needed to be relocated from the area behind the dam where the reservoir was now to be located. The damming of the river causes silt that is brought about from the seasonal flooding to become trapped behind the dam; this consequence has led to fewer nutrients for farming making it necessary to utilize expensive fertilizers.
The purpose of constructing the Grand Coulee Dam was to address the need for development in the northwestern United States, specifically in Washington State. A man by the name of William M. Clapp advocated for an irrigation infrastructure that would be fed by the Columbia River and give the opportunity to change the Eastern Washington State region into something other than a backwater town. Initial challenges included financial constraints and the fact that even if the dam was successful and put on line, the population that currently resided there was considerably small with no great demand for most of the electricity the hydropower plant would inevitably produce. In order to create a reservoir necessary for the generation of electricity, land that had been settled by Native American tribes in the region would need to be submerged. With this loss of land also came loss of traditions inherently important to their cultural heritage. Diverting a river from its natural flow has environmental consequences and in the case of the Grand Coulee Dam, disruption of salmon spawning grounds that greatly decreased the population and in turn robbed the Native Americans of a food source but also altered the ecosystem of the area.
Before the Itaipu Dam could break ground, an agreement needed to be made between the Brazil and Paraguay whom have had previous border disputes, which sit on either sides of the Parana River. Other challenges that needed to be addressed was the land that would soon be transformed into a lake and would displace not only humans, but a large population of wildlife that inhabited the region as well as the disappearance of farmland and rainforest. Real estate evaluation was preformed and people were given compensation for their land. A biological survey was also conducted, and before the land was to be flooded, traps were set and more than 30,000 animals were relocated. Itaipu Dam is located in Foz Do Iguacu, and at the time it was being constructed a whole town was created to house the many workers and their families, providing them with services such as schools and hospitals. 24 million people are provided power from this one plant, and it is the largest dam when measured by output of electricity.