They have a super educational display on the construction of the dam, movies on hydro power, interactive computer stations, groovy demonstrations on how to save energy, and a lot morem Oh, and I got to take a guided tour inside and on top of the dam. So awesome.
You could actually see the four electic generators that provide 22 percent of British Columbia's power.
The Guide said BC has to expand its power capacity because new industry and residences are drawing much more power in the past. BC actually has to buy power from the USA. The guide said most of the new demand comes from air conditioners in the summer - people didn't use air conditioners so much in the past which requires a huge amount of energy to run (Major Dude likes the old school of staying cool in the breeze). Future dam development may be on a smaller scale with many projects generating around 20 Mega Watts, or 10 percent of what Revelstoke produces.
The Guide also said that a lot of the new electronic devices like remote control TVs (which always use energy) and old computer monitors (which draw more power than an energy efficient fridge) are streaching the power supply to its limit.
Some Dam Facts...
* The dam's powerhouse was completed in 1984.
* It is BC's second largest powerplant.
* The concrete dam is 175 metres high and 470 metres wide.
* A 150 km long Columbia River reservoir supplies water for the dam.
* Maximum Sustained Generating Capacity: 1980 Mega Watts.
* Annual Average Plant Generation: 7,817 Giga Watts.
* BC Hydro operates 30 hydro electric faciities and three natural gas-fuelled thermal power plants.
* About 80 percent of the province's electricity is produced by hydro power.
Wow, that's a lot of info. It was my first dam visit and kinda like being in a James Bond movie. Walking beneath the huge concrete dam, I was looking for quick escape routes in case it blew up all of a sudden.
Make sure you visit a dam someday!
-- Major Dude
Sent from my BlackBerry device on the Rogers Wireless Network
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