Foz do Iguacu
Brazils economy and population rose in the 1960s and continued for the next three decades. This made Brazil one of the most populated countries in the world. They needed a way to bring energy and power to millions of its citizens, mostly those living in Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. 10% of the fresh water in the world is found in Brazil. Knowing this, construction for a hydroelectric dam was put into place on one of their very large rivers. The problem was finding the right spot since the foundations for many rivers are not strongly structured. The Rio Parana was considered the most effective spot because it holds more than enough water, and the bedrock is very strong and stable. Besides a soft spot in the base area of the dam, which had to be filled with cement, the dams site was approved.
The Rio Parana itself holds four times the water than in the Colorado River. The generation power of the dam could be six times the electricity generated by the Hoover dam upon completion, and could be 18 times as long. The first problem was that the area where the dam is to be built lays half in Paraguay. Brazil and Paraguay had a war, which resulted in half the citizens of Paraguay to suffer death, and for Paraguay to lose half of its territory. For seven years the project was put on hold until there was a mutual agreement. The understanding of the implications were understood by both parties, but nobody at the time seemed to mention the environmental impact created by such a large change in the rivers course. The energy generated has been substantial in Brazil, but thousands of residents were evacuated, and species that cannot brave the flood for many days will die. In May of 1975, however, the Itaipu dam construction starts. The first goal is to divert the Parana River. In 1978, they succeed in doing this task. Then cofferdams are put into place to completely block the flow of the old river. These dams are incredibly unstable as they are essentially just piles of large rubber holding backwater. The dam works when water falls down onto the turbines in 18 chambers of the dam. These chambers feed water through a turbine mechanism, which turns the turbine and generates electricity. The fall of 100 meters was the ideal distance for the Itaipu dam, as it will create the most energy. To do this, the dam had to be constructed even higher, which results in even more devastation to the habitat. Workers came in from all over and eventually there were 30,000 workers. This was very similar to a gold rush in the United States where a big town was put up nearly overnight, and became a boom in Brazil. The dam’s 7 km long walls are made of hollow cement. All of the equipment is being held within the walls, which was a very cool part of the design. To make the 18 blocks of cement, the cement had to be cooled first, to ensure no cracks would occur while setting. The amount of concrete used seemed to be about a 40-ton truck of cement every 20 minutes. When the dam is complete, it looks astonishing, and to be put to the test, the gates to the channel that diverts the Paraná need to be shut. This will flow water down into the dam’s walls and through the turbines.
In October of 1982, 7 years after construction started, the gates to the diversion channel were closed and the dam began sifting water for energy. When this caused 100 m of water to overflow into the residing hillside, environmentalist saved thousands of animals. The overflowing of the dam’s walls was a worry, so a spillway was built. This spillway can be used effectively to stop the overflowing of water on the backside of the dam during the rainy season. Also, power lines the length of 1.5 times the circumference of the earth stretched from Itaipu to Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. Residents here were astonished at how much they actually use this energy source when in the 80’s, a power line went down and tripped the switch allowing 13 of the 18 turbines to shut off. There was too much power being generated and nowhere for it to go. In Rio and Sao Paolo, people going to work were stuck in even more traffic as traffic lights went out. Many buildings lost power, and the cities shut down. Eight billion pounds quickly went into upgrading the transmission system.
Hydroelectric dams generate 90% of Brazils electricity. The environment is still impacted however, and the price is put into question. Hydroelectric dams can put people out of homes and mostly harms many species that live near the water yet cannot survive in it. They are flooded by rising water levels and many will not be able to survive without assistance getting to solid land. I think that the positives, however, outweigh the negatives in this scenario. The Itaipu dam can generate an insane amount of electricity throughout the year. It is located in an area where there is not much human development, meaning there is more room for animals to thrive. If a large section of the river became even larger, it may give rise to an even more diverse ecosystem. This being said, the effects are still not the natural course the river would take, clearly, and I feel that expert environmentalists should be studying the impacts. To look at population estimates before the dam was built, and between the times the Rio Parana started to flow through the dam until now. You could look at the health of the water of the river flowing into the dam to see what the river has picked up in even larger path. The health of the animals in the river and the health of animals that were displaced by the rivers rise in the water level. This dam is very cool and I feel it is worth it, but I also feel that there is an opportunity to see what damage is really done to the environment and biodiversity when implementing hydroelectric dams in a country.
The Rio Parana itself holds four times the water than in the Colorado River. The generation power of the dam could be six times the electricity generated by the Hoover dam upon completion, and could be 18 times as long. The first problem was that the area where the dam is to be built lays half in Paraguay. Brazil and Paraguay had a war, which resulted in half the citizens of Paraguay to suffer death, and for Paraguay to lose half of its territory. For seven years the project was put on hold until there was a mutual agreement. The understanding of the implications were understood by both parties, but nobody at the time seemed to mention the environmental impact created by such a large change in the rivers course. The energy generated has been substantial in Brazil, but thousands of residents were evacuated, and species that cannot brave the flood for many days will die. In May of 1975, however, the Itaipu dam construction starts. The first goal is to divert the Parana River. In 1978, they succeed in doing this task. Then cofferdams are put into place to completely block the flow of the old river. These dams are incredibly unstable as they are essentially just piles of large rubber holding backwater. The dam works when water falls down onto the turbines in 18 chambers of the dam. These chambers feed water through a turbine mechanism, which turns the turbine and generates electricity. The fall of 100 meters was the ideal distance for the Itaipu dam, as it will create the most energy. To do this, the dam had to be constructed even higher, which results in even more devastation to the habitat. Workers came in from all over and eventually there were 30,000 workers. This was very similar to a gold rush in the United States where a big town was put up nearly overnight, and became a boom in Brazil. The dam’s 7 km long walls are made of hollow cement. All of the equipment is being held within the walls, which was a very cool part of the design. To make the 18 blocks of cement, the cement had to be cooled first, to ensure no cracks would occur while setting. The amount of concrete used seemed to be about a 40-ton truck of cement every 20 minutes. When the dam is complete, it looks astonishing, and to be put to the test, the gates to the channel that diverts the Paraná need to be shut. This will flow water down into the dam’s walls and through the turbines.
In October of 1982, 7 years after construction started, the gates to the diversion channel were closed and the dam began sifting water for energy. When this caused 100 m of water to overflow into the residing hillside, environmentalist saved thousands of animals. The overflowing of the dam’s walls was a worry, so a spillway was built. This spillway can be used effectively to stop the overflowing of water on the backside of the dam during the rainy season. Also, power lines the length of 1.5 times the circumference of the earth stretched from Itaipu to Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. Residents here were astonished at how much they actually use this energy source when in the 80’s, a power line went down and tripped the switch allowing 13 of the 18 turbines to shut off. There was too much power being generated and nowhere for it to go. In Rio and Sao Paolo, people going to work were stuck in even more traffic as traffic lights went out. Many buildings lost power, and the cities shut down. Eight billion pounds quickly went into upgrading the transmission system.
Hydroelectric dams generate 90% of Brazils electricity. The environment is still impacted however, and the price is put into question. Hydroelectric dams can put people out of homes and mostly harms many species that live near the water yet cannot survive in it. They are flooded by rising water levels and many will not be able to survive without assistance getting to solid land. I think that the positives, however, outweigh the negatives in this scenario. The Itaipu dam can generate an insane amount of electricity throughout the year. It is located in an area where there is not much human development, meaning there is more room for animals to thrive. If a large section of the river became even larger, it may give rise to an even more diverse ecosystem. This being said, the effects are still not the natural course the river would take, clearly, and I feel that expert environmentalists should be studying the impacts. To look at population estimates before the dam was built, and between the times the Rio Parana started to flow through the dam until now. You could look at the health of the water of the river flowing into the dam to see what the river has picked up in even larger path. The health of the animals in the river and the health of animals that were displaced by the rivers rise in the water level. This dam is very cool and I feel it is worth it, but I also feel that there is an opportunity to see what damage is really done to the environment and biodiversity when implementing hydroelectric dams in a country.