Natel Energy today (Aug 6) announced the publication of a peer-reviewed paper in Environmental and Sustainability Indicators highlighting the exceptional fish passage survival rates achieved by Natel's FishSafe Restoration Hydro Turbine (RHT) designs. The study, titled "Maximizing safe passage for large fish: Evaluating survival of rainbow trout through a novel hydropower turbine," was made possible through competitive funding opportunities brought forth by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO). Co-authors include research scientists from DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
The paper details extensive through-turbine fish passage testing of a FishSafe RHT conducted in 2020 and 2022 at the Monroe Drop Hydro Project in Culver, Oregon. Results show immediate survival rates of 100% in 2020 and 98.6% in 2022 for hatchery-reared rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) 200-530 mm (8-21 in) long passing through a 1.9 m (6.2 ft) diameter FishSafe RHT. The research team did not observe any immediate mortalities or major injuries, demonstrating the RHT's potential to significantly minimize fish injury during hydropower generation. This success builds on previous through-turbine passage studies with American eel and juvenile river herring, which both demonstrated 100% survival, establishing the RHT as the first turbine design in the industry to facilitate passage for both large and small fish while maintaining high power performance.
This latest study is particularly applicable to the global effort to modernize aging hydropower fleets in a cost-effective way to meet regulatory requirements for improved fish passage. Rainbow trout are a species of salmonid genetically identical to steelhead, but non-migratory and easy to breed in captivity. In the Pacific Northwest, successful salmonid passage is paramount to the health of resident salmon and steelhead populations. In the Northeast U.S., Atlantic Canada, and Europe where Atlantic salmon are endangered or threatened, technologies like the FishSafe RHT can support their recovery by reducing the negative impacts of hydropower plants. The RHT's innovative design, featuring blades with thick leading edges and a forward slant, reduces the likelihood and severity of blade strikes to fish and eliminates the need for standard fish-diverting exclusion screens, lowering installation costs.
"Our collaboration with PNNL, and the support from the DOE WPTO, have been instrumental in demonstrating the safety of our Restoration Hydro Turbine," said Sterling Watson, Principal Engineer at Natel Energy. "The ability to ensure high survival rates for fish, including adult salmonids, makes it easy for the hydropower industry to address downstream fish passage while maintaining efficient, cost-effective operations."
Upgrading existing turbines with FishSafe RHTs promises to protect fish, simplify operations, and reduce the total cost of ownership for power producers. Natel has contracted large-scale FishSafe RHT upgrades at sites in the Eastern U.S. and Europe, and numerous design feasibility studies are well underway for other sites in North America and Europe. Existing RHT units have been operating in Maine, Oregon, and Austria for a number of years. These FishSafe projects represent a significant stride towards preserving freshwater biodiversity, while maintaining flexible, baseload renewable power.
About Natel Energy
Natel Energy is a technology and engineering company working to support healthy rivers, promote biodiversity and decarbonize the grid by developing hydropower turbines that enable 98-100% downstream passage survival for fish. Natel creates high-performance FishSafe turbine designs informed by original fish passage experimental research combined with industry-leading computational fluid dynamics modeling and analysis. Natel conducts design feasibility studies, performs fish passage and performance testing, and works with trusted turbine manufacturers to implement its runner designs worldwide. Natel is a privately held company located in Alameda, California in the United States. Visit www.natelenergy.com for more information.
Contact:
Natel Energy: Kate Stirr, kate@natelenergy.com
