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Water Power Peer Review

Water Power Peer Review. The Potential Impacts of OTEC Intakes on Aquatic Organisms at an OTEC Site Currently Under Development(Port Allen, Kauai). Tim Hogan. Alden Research Laboratory, Inc. thogan@aldenlab.com (508) 829-6000 Nov ember 2, 2011. Purpose, Objectives, & Integration.

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Water Power Peer Review

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  1. Water Power Peer Review The Potential Impacts of OTEC Intakes on Aquatic Organisms at an OTEC Site Currently Under Development(Port Allen, Kauai) Tim Hogan Alden Research Laboratory, Inc. thogan@aldenlab.com (508) 829-6000 Nov ember 2, 2011

  2. Purpose, Objectives, & Integration Impingement Entrainment Flow Flow Passage of smaller organisms through screen mesh Pinning of larger organisms on screen mesh

  3. Purpose, Objectives, & Integration Challenges, barriers, knowledge gaps, or problems that this project addresses • Hard to visualize warm water intake footprint and design options • Balance between environment and intake/facility costs • Few data on ichthyoplankton in tropics • No current regulatory-based intake design criteria – assumed conservative How solving this problem relates to the Program’s mission and objectives • Will advance the research, development, and deployment of new OTEC • Will help understand/minimize potential environmental impacts of OTEC • Will identify and address the technical and nontechnical barriers to growth of OTEC

  4. Technical Approach Technical approach • Desktop engineering analysis • Evaluate and select technologies with potential • Estimate exclusion potential for intake screen using species of concern • Conceptual design and preliminary cost estimate • Biological field sampling program • Monthly bongo net sampling at proposed site • Will establish a baseline characterization of organisms that have potential to be impacted

  5. Technical Approach (cont.) Key issues addressed and significance • Preliminary cost estimate for intake • Potential regulatory and economic barriers to OTEC growth in U.S. Unique aspects of approach • Using accepted engineering practice to inform the intake design process without knowledge of regulatory-based intake design criteria

  6. Plan, Schedule, & Budget Schedule • Initiation date: June 2010 • Planned completion date: December 2012 • Completion date has changed due to delays in NEPA review process • 6 month contract extension was preliminarily approved • Milestones for FY 2010 – draft Interim Report on desktop engineering analysis (delivered Q4 2010) • Milestones for FY 2011 – change of scope for biological sampling Budget • % Spent = 21%; % Remaining = 79%

  7. Accomplishments and Results Onshore Intake, Onshore Screening Technical accomplishments and significance • Site-specific intake analysis complete • Preliminary costs complete for 3 intake designs • Help reveal cost drivers for OTEC • Cost info may help guide regulatory discussions regarding intake How do accomplishments relate to project milestones, barriers, and objectives • Help relate biological and cost considerations (milestone) • May help regulators develop intake design standards (barrier) Accomplishments benchmarked against the technical targets • Deliverable on schedule for intake analysis (summary of Year 1 efforts) Offshore Intake, Onshore Screening Offshore Intake, Onshore Screening

  8. Challenges to Date Challenges faced and impacts on accomplishments and progress • Environmental review process for field sampling • Delay resulted in deletion of Task 1 (preliminary biological field sampling) Approaches to resolving issues or challenges • Increased communication with DOE project officers • Delay provided time to incorporate feedback on intake analysis • Led to proposed change in scope for biological field sampling effort • Revised sampling plan should yield more valuable data • Have been granted a contract extension; awaiting NEPA review of proposed change in scope

  9. Next Steps Project plans through project completion (Q1 FY 2013) Barrier to be addressed • Lack of biological data on species that could be impacted Milestones/deliverables • 9-month biological field sampling program • Data analysis • Draft and final report Possible next steps and their impacts • Workshop with NOAA to discuss intake design criteria – will help developers understand cost impacts of intake of total project Area 1 Area 2 Area 3

  10. Next Steps (cont.) Additional tasks • Bathymetric studies, ocean current studies to refine intake design • Estimate potential annual entrainment impacts Potential R&D opportunities • Pilot-scale testing of an intake screen for biological effectiveness

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