Upgrades to reduce the impact on fish passing downstream along Wanapum Dam
Providing energy to the community of Grant County, Washington, the Wanapum Hydroelectric Development is a powerhouse consisting of ten identical vertical shaft hydraulic turbine-generator units. In 1992—based on the results of a feasibility study—the Grant County Public Utility District No. 2 chose to replace the turbine runners with state-of-the-art models of the same type—only much larger.
The Wanapum Dam Turbine Rehabilitation included the replacement of the original turbines and replacement or refurbishment of generating equipment, which was nearing the end of its lifecycle. The existing 16-stay vanes were reused, while the number of wicket gates were increased from 20 to 32, thus reducing the number of strikes for fish. Plus, fully-spherical hubs and discharge rings eliminate the wedge-shared gaps between wicket gates and the mating parts--a true hazard for fish.
In the end, our design solutions reduced the mortality rate of juvenile fish passing downstream on the dam while simultaneously allowing Grant County to remain compliant with their FERC license. Wanapum now thrives off of increased capacity, efficiency, and performance.
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