The State of Colorado is committed to the development of alternative power resources and wanted to quantify potential from small hydropower systems. In 2016, the CO Energy Office teamed with AmecFW to assess statewide energy opportunities within water delivery systems where PRVs reduce water pressure. Developing the inventory with ArcGIS tools enabled powerful visualization and analytics, and a customized geoportal enables water providers to interactively enter and extract information on a map. Presentation made at 2017 Esri International GIS User Conference.

1. © Amec Foster Wheeler 2017© Amec Foster Wheeler 2017
Empowering Small Hydropower with GIS
Esri International User Conference
July 13, 2017

2. 1. Small Hydropower
► What and why
► Feasibility and potential
► Hurdles to development
► State’s interest and programs
2. The PRV-Hydropower Initiative
► PRVs
► State goals
► The case for GIS
3. The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
► Current purpose and functionality
► The benefits of incorporating GIS
► Vision for future capabilities/design
2 © Amec Foster Wheeler 2017
Empowering Small Hydropower with GIS
Discussion Points:

3. © Amec Foster Wheeler 2017
Small Hydropower

4. Small hydro systems harness the energy in flowing water to produce
energy
► Typical Installations
► Dams, irrigation canals, pipelines
► Production Capacity
► Micro: 5 - 100 kW
► Small: 1 - 20 MW
► Large: > 20 MW
► Advantages
► Minimal environmental impact
► Typically not intermittent
► Mature technology with predictable operating costs
► Can offset or eliminate site electricity consumption
► Can provide baseload generation
© Amec Foster Wheeler 20174
Small Hydropower
What and why:
Image courtesy US DOE
…average 100
watt solar
panel outputs
~40 watts

5. Some Considerations…
► Topographic conditions
► Water velocity and flow consistency
► Generation capacity
► Proximity to grid or facility
► Access to site
► Energy provider policies for net metering
► Consumption rates
© Amec Foster Wheeler 20175
Small Hydropower
Feasibility:

6. Primary challenges include:
► Upfront investment
► Cost of site assessment and engineering study
► Time Consuming process
► Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) permitting
requirements
► Lack of actionable data
© Amec Foster Wheeler 20176
Small Hydropower
Hurdles to development:

7. With varied topography and high-elevation
reservoirs, Colorado likely has hundreds of MW
of undeveloped hydropower at existing
impoundments, canals and diversions, and
existing municipal water systems.
► At least 30 Bureau of Reclamation sites
► Dept of Energy estimates additional 11
► Unquantified potential in agricultural and
municipal infrastructure
© Amec Foster Wheeler 20177
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s potential
Currently, hydropower provides about 5% of Colorado's
electricity, more than 60 hydropower facilities, ranging in
size from 5 kW to 300 MW. Combined capacity is 1,150MW.

8. © Amec Foster Wheeler 20178
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s potential
According to the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA), the state has
substantial untapped capacity for hydropower development within
existing agriculture-related infrastructure, including the following:
► Pressurized irrigation systems
► Ditch drops
► Existing dams
In recent years, new innovative technologies have been developed to
harness hydropower throughout existing water distribution infrastructure,
including:
► Clean water
► Return flows to treatment facilities

9. © Amec Foster Wheeler 20179
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s resources and programs for development
The State supports development of small hydropower in a number of
ways, including:

10. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201710
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s resources and programs for development
The State supports development of small hydropower in a number of
ways, including:
► Colorado Small Hydropower Handbook

11. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201711
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s resources and programs for development
The State supports development of small hydropower in a number of
ways, including:
► Colorado Small Hydropower Handbook
► FERC Application and Exemption Support

12. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201712
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s resources and programs for development
The State supports development of small hydropower in a number of
ways, including:
► Colorado Small Hydropower Handbook
► FERC Application and Exemption Support
► Financing Opportunities

13. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201713
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s resources and programs for development
The State supports development of small hydropower in a number of
ways, including:
► Colorado Small Hydropower Handbook
► FERC Application and Exemption Support
► Financing Opportunities
► Cooperative Associations

14. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201714
Small Hydropower
Colorado’s resources and programs for development
The State supports development of small hydropower in a number of
ways, including:
► Colorado Small Hydropower Handbook
► FERC Application and Exemption Support
► Financing Opportunities
► Cooperative Associations
► Feasibility Assessment Resources
► Agricultural / Instream Initiatives
► PRV Initiative

15. © Amec Foster Wheeler 2017
Colorado’s PRV-Hydropower Initiative

16. Municipal water supply systems are often fed by gravity where a water
supply reservoir is located at a higher elevation. This can result in excess
pressure within supply lines, typically reduced using a PRV.
PRVs are commonly used in water systems to reduce the pressure of
water flowing between zones of the water system, and to reduce
pressure to a level appropriate for use by water system customers.
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201716
Colorado’s PRV-Hydropower Initiative
Pressure Relief Valves (PRVs) explained:

17. Typically high-head, high flow impulse or reaction turbines
► Rely on water velocity or pressure within pipes
► Different requirements and capacities
► Available space
► Water pressure
► Production potential
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201717
Colorado’s PRV-Hydropower Initiative
Types of PRV turbines:
Pelton Wheel Francis TurbineFrancis Scroll

18. ► Research recent innovations and applications for PRV-hydropower
technologies.
► Perform site-assessment case studies for potential PRV-hydropower
projects in two interested communities.
► Project the estimated hydropower potential in Colorado where
PRVs are currently installed.
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201718
Colorado’s PRV-Hydropower Initiative
State’s phase 1 goals and objectives:

19. ► Research recent innovations and applications for PRV-hydropower
technologies.
► Perform site-assessment case studies for potential PRV-hydropower
projects in two interested communities.
► Project the estimated hydropower potential in Colorado where PRVs
are currently installed.
► Develop a comprehensive list of the water delivery organizations
within Colorado.
► Solicit information about existing PRVs and level of interest in small
hydropower development.
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201719
Colorado’s PRV-Hydropower Initiative
State’s initial goals and objectives:

20. Specific study-data needs:
► Centralized data repository
► Relational database to compare records and
relationships
► Ability to query, interact with, and visualize information
► Simple data input method
Spatial data and questions:
► PRV and infrastructure locations
► Distance to facility or powerline
► Facility location and dimensions
► Electricity provider
► Stream/pipe location and flow rate
► Topographic variation and elevation change
► Watershed, water system boundaries
► Proximity to roadway or site access
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201720
Colorado’s PRV-Hydropower Initiative
Applying the science of where – the case for GIS:

21. © Amec Foster Wheeler 2017
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal

22. Configuration and authentication specifications:
► Database: SQL Server Management Studio 2012
► Web server: IIS 7
► GIS server: ArcGIS Server 10.1
► Security:
► Website authentication using Asp.net, forms authentication, and
sqlMembershipProvider; specific to SQL Server Management Studio, IIS, and
asp.net.
► Services running from the GIS Server are locked down using windows
authentication linked to our LDAP server and routed through a proxy to allow web
access
► Each authorized user is granted login credentials and can only view and
manipulate system-specific data for their entity
► Administrative users can view and manage all data in the geoportal
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201722
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Current configuration:

23. First priority was to verify water entity contact information
boundaries.
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201723
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Water Provider information collection:

24. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201724
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
PRV-data collection and nominal capacity calculation:

25. © Amec Foster Wheeler 201725
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Current purpose and functionality:
water conservation and conservancy districts are not shown
473
providers
Inventory mapped
service areas and
standardized
attributes collected
334 PRVs with
development
potential

26. ► Time!
► Multi-department contacts
► Outreach and incentives for participation
► More advanced PRV-assessment tools and analytics for site
assessment, scenario modeling, and cost estimating
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201726
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Limitations:

27. ► State
► Empower small hydropower development
► Increase access to info, reduce barriers
► Quickly assess potential, focus resources for most impact
► Inventory projects and opportunities, track successes
► Users
► Access and interact with data
► Evaluate site suitability and generation capacity without upfront investment
► Visualize and understand system characteristics
► Contribute to data quality and accuracy
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201727
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Use of site for mutual benefits:

28. Phase 2 goals for the geoportal interface:
► Spatial analytics in a dashboard configuration
► Integrate additional datasets
► Stream flow
► Elevation data
► Parcels
► Structures
► …else…
► More robust site-assessment tools
► Multi-criteria evaluation
► Rapid decision support for basic feasibility
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201728
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Vision for future capabilities and design enhancements:

29. Spatial Approach:
► Central data repository for
relational data and
► Easy to compare multiple
variables for rapid assessment
► Data presented in map context
► Visual interaction with data to
create, edit, or answer queries
► Inexpensive to model for
scenario and cost planning
© Amec Foster Wheeler 201729
The PRV-Hydropower Geoportal
Benefits of incorporating GIS:
Standard Approach:
► Disconnected drawings,
documents, and spreadsheets
► Difficult to compare and analyse
multiple variables
► Data presented in lists or forms
► Slow, encumbered analysis,
usually limited to single site
► Expensive to perform site
assessment and feasibility study

30. Contact us
Amec Foster Wheeler
Geospatial Technologies
Carrie V. McCrea, GISP
carrie.mccrea@amecfw.com
Daniel Gwartney, GISP
daniel.gwartney@amecfw.com
30 © Amec Foster Wheeler 2017
Colorado Energy Office
www.colorado.gov/energyoffice
303-866-2100