ECOKIDS

Did you know that there is a hydroelectric plant in Ouray? Do you know what a hydroelectric plant is? When flowing water is captured and turned into electricity, it is called hydroelectric power or hydropower. It’s pretty cool because it uses only natural resources to make the electricity.

The plant building is located below Oak Street. It was built in 1902 by the original owners of the Beaumont Hotel. Ouray was one of the first cities in the nation to go electric. Eric Jacobson bought the plant in 1992 for $10 at Colorado Ute's (a power company) bankruptcy auction. He had it running by 1994. Employee Chris Doddins gave us a tour.

The plant runs year round and someone has to be there all the time. There are three people who work at the plant.

We started our tour at the dam along the Uncompahgre River, one-point-eight miles above the power plant. The original dam was built in the late 1800s. The dam was built in a curve because a curve is stronger when something is pushing against it. The Uncompahgre River and Bear Creek feed the dam. At the dam, some water goes over the top and the rest of the water travels in a big pipe along the river into the hydroplant.

When the pipe comes in to the plant it branches off to one big turbine and two smaller turbines. A turbine is an engine that spins and makes energy from its spinning motion. The turbines here turn by the force of water coming out of the pipe into their buckets. The spinning turbines have a rod that turns the magnets and the copper wire inside the generators. The large turbine in the plant spins 356 revolutions per minute.

The generators have a rod that spins magnets around a copper wire. Have you ever held two magnets close to each other? If you try to push the south poles together, they push apart. The same thing happens when you put the two north poles together. These properties of magnets can be used to make electricity.

Moving magnetic fields can pull and push electrons. Magnets and wire are used together in electric generators. A spinning copper coil put between two magnets can create a steady flow of electrons. By passing electrons through copper wires, creation of electricity occurs.

The plant uses all natural, state of the art technology to make electricity. The water comes in and goes out in an instant. There is no wasting or burning and no steam is produced. The plant produces 850 kilowatt hours per day. San Miguel Power Association buys the electricity produced. It was interesting to see and learn about water power being turned into electricity.