Ouray Hydro Plant

Ouray Hopes to Install Small Hydroelectric Plant

OURAY, Colo. – Town officials in Ouray hope to secure a $20,000 grant that will allow them to generate electricity from the power of falling water.

Ouray has had a hydro plant since the 1880s, one of the four longest-continuously operating plants in the world. It generates 800 kilowatts, which used to be enough to supply much of the town’s electrical needs.

But Ouray has grown somewhat in recent years, and individual use has grown even more. To help reduce reliance upon outside – mostly coal-generated – electricity, the town has taken several measures. First it replaced incandescent lights with LEDs, which use far less electricity. The payback is expected to occur within just a few years, with great savings over the longer time span of the new light fixtures.

Now, the town hopes to harness the power of gravity through a small hydroelectric plant, called a microhydro unit. The proposed plant could generate 20 kilowatts of electricity. In comparison, 25 kilowatts are required to operate a motor used to pump water from the town’s geothermally heated hot springs through a water purifier.

Mayor Bob Risch, who ran for office on the platform of making the town “energy responsible,” says it costs $2,000 a month to operate the pump. The town, he said, hopes to save $20,000 annually through installation of the microhydro unit.

Next on the agenda, he says, is to explore potential for greater use of the heat underlying the town. In addition to the community hot springs, a number of hotels have their own hot springs.

In Aspen, work continues on a much bigger hydroelectric plant, one able to produce 5.5 million kilowatt hours annually. Aspen voters agreed to issue $5.5 million in bonds to pay for the facility on Castle Creek. The Aspen Times says that when the hydroelectric plant goes into production, probably in fall of 2010, it will reduce the community’s carbon footprint by 0.6 percent.

At a meeting of several mayors in the San Juan Mountains, including those from Ouray and Telluride, electrical providers noted that many ideas for electrical generation have been offered. However, even more important in the short term may be making more efficient use of existing electricity, whether produced by burning coal or by falling water.

“We have a responsibility to serve our members’ demands,” said Wes Perrin, a Telluride resident and president of the board of directors for San Miguel Power Authority. “But, if we can make members more aware of energy efficiency, we can lessen that demand.”

Are you interested in moving to or investing in beautiful southwest Colorado? No one knows this special area better than I do! Contact me and we’ll discuss your future in the rugged western slope of Colorado.