Potential for small hydropower development in the Lower Pra River Basin, Ghana

Arthur, Emmanuel Kwesi; Anyemedu, F. O. K.; Gyamfi, Charles; Tannor, Patricia Asantewaa; Adjei, Kwaku Amaning; Anornu, Geophrey K.; Odai, Samuel Nii

doi:10.1016/j.ejrh.2020.100757

Cited by 15 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 23 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The 500-m minimum site spacing is commonly adopted (ex. [13,33,35]) to allow river ecosystem rejuvenation. These selected points were the potential sites for small-scale hydropower.…”

Section: Topographic Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Notably, the study limits the potential sites to a minimum elevation head of 20 m. Future studies may consider a lower elevation head (<20 m) to identify potential hydropower sites. The global hydropower assessment of Hoes et al [2] sets a minimum elevation head of 1 m but limits the river discharge to 0.1 m 3 /s to deliver the smallest hydropower plant capacity of 1 kW, while the study of Arthur et al [35] considers 10 m as the minimum head in its final selection of hydropower sites.…”

Section: Small-scale Hydropower Potential In the Island Landscapementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Several similar studies used global datasets such as the FAO digital soil map of the world to carry their analysis (ex. [35]). However, the study results still call for localized data to validate the estimated runoff and establish the efficiency of the CN method in estimating runoff for the target landscape.…”

Section: Dataset Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the study results still call for localized data to validate the estimated runoff and establish the efficiency of the CN method in estimating runoff for the target landscape. Furthermore, it would also be interesting to use physically based hydrologic models such as the studies of [16,18,35,58] to improve understanding of the hydrology of the study area. Further fieldwork such as those conducted by [16] is necessary to validate the results.…”

Section: Dataset Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In many developing countries where land and water resources are available, the exploitation of hydropower sources is an attractive prospect [3,7]. Such systems offer less impact on the environment than fossil-fueled energy production, but initial investment cost seems high [3,7,35,54]. Knowledge of the possible adverse effects of hydropower and the underlying cost effectiveness are a challenge to future decisions on the scale of new developments.…”

Section: Land-use Policy and Population Density As Constraintsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Incorporating Landscape Dynamics in Small-Scale Hydropower Site Location Using a GIS and Spatial Analysis Tool: The Case of Bohol, Central Philippines

2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Hydropower depends on the elevation head and water flow of a river. However, other factors must be considered, such as the risk associated with surface processes and environmental factors. The study aims to analyze a landscape’s dynamics and locate potential sites for small-scale hydropower systems (<10 MW) using a geographic information system, the curve number method, and the TopoToolbox with a digital elevation model and available spatial datasets. Across Bohol Island in the central Philippines, the study found 94 potential sites with hydraulic heads ranging from 20–62.4 m, river discharges between 0.02 to 9.71 m3/s, and a total hydropower capacity of 13.595 MW. The river profile analysis classified the sites to five levels of risk to geo-hazards, with three-fourths of the sites being at ‘high’ to ‘very high’ risk levels while more than 50% of the total power can be generated in ‘low’ risk areas. Land-use and population constraints reduced the sites to 25 and the hydropower capacity by 60%. Although limited to the table assessment phase of hydropower development, the study showed the potential of small-scale hydropower systems in the study area, their spatial distribution, and the risk associated with each site. The study results provided data-limited resource managers’ and energy planners’ insights in targeting potential locations and minimizing field investigation costs and time.

show abstract

“…The 500-m minimum site spacing is commonly adopted (ex. [13,33,35]) to allow river ecosystem rejuvenation. These selected points were the potential sites for small-scale hydropower.…”

Section: Topographic Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Small-scale Hydropower Potential In the Island Landscapementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Dataset Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%