Hydroelectrics

Hydroelectric turbines nowadays are easier and easier to implement into energy plans without having any real impact upon their environment. Ideally, you need at least 3 feet of fall with a 12 gpm (gallons per minute) water flow. This is about as fast as a fast walk or jog. If you have higher fall (pressure), you can get by with much less water. However, it is notable that turbines now only need to be placed in about 13 inches of water (depending on the model). Read more about Wind Turbine feasiblility.

Stoney meets all of these requirements easily, and at more than one location. Turbines that would be suitable for our campus are small and can be bought for about $5,000 which put out about 1 kWh (1000 watt-hours) to 30 kWh per day. Maintenance is relatively easy as well, as many of the parts can be found at auto parts stores. This should be considered as a supplement to our energy plan, as it would seem that we cannot afford to create a large-scale permanent hdroelectric dam currently.