A framework to identify Pareto-efficient subdaily environmental flow constraints on hydropower reservoirs using a grid-wide power dispatch model

Artículo de publicación ISI Hydrologic alteration due to hydropeaking reservoir operations is a main concern worldwide. Subdaily environmental flow constraints (ECs) on operations can be promising alternatives for mitigating negative impacts. However, those constraints reduce the flexibility of hydr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Water Resources Research
Main Authors: Olivares Alveal, Marcelo, Haas, Jannik, Palma Behnke, Rodrigo, Benavides Farías, Carlos
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Amer Geophysical Union 2015
Subjects:
Juvenile Atlantic Salmon
Glen-Canyon-Dam
Hydrologic Alteration
Regulated River
Management
Hydropeaking
Variability
Downstream
Operations
Regimes
Isi
Atlantic salmon
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1002/2014WR016215
https://repositorio.uchile.cl/handle/2250/133934
Description
Summary:Artículo de publicación ISI Hydrologic alteration due to hydropeaking reservoir operations is a main concern worldwide. Subdaily environmental flow constraints (ECs) on operations can be promising alternatives for mitigating negative impacts. However, those constraints reduce the flexibility of hydropower plants, potentially with higher costs for the power system. To study the economic and environmental efficiency of ECs, this work proposes a novel framework comprising four steps: (i) assessment of the current subdaily hydrologic alteration; (ii) formulation and implementation of a short-term, grid-wide hydrothermal coordination model; (iii) design of ECs in the form of maximum ramping rates (MRRs) and minimum flows (MIFs) for selected hydropower reservoirs; and (iv) identification of Pareto-efficient solutions in terms of grid-wide costs and the Richard-Baker flashiness index for subdaily hydrologic alteration (SDHA). The framework was applied to Chile's main power grid, assessing 25 EC cases, involving five MIFs and five MRRs. Each case was run for a dry, normal, and wet water year type. Three Pareto-efficient ECs are found, with remarkably small cost increase below 2% and a SDHA improvement between 28% and 90%. While the case involving the highest MIF worsens the flashiness of another basin, the other two have no negative effect on other basins and can be recommended for implementation. Chile's National Commission for Scientific and Technological Research CONICYT/Fondecyt/11110326 CONICYT/Fondecyt/1120317 CONICYT/Fondap/15110019

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