Seasonal & Pumped Storage Hydro for Yukon. Alterna>ve Hydro Workshop. Prepared for. John Maissan. Yukon Conserva>on Society. September 30, 2015

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1 Seasonal & Pumped Storage Hydro for Yukon By John Maissan Prepared for Yukon Conserva>on Society Alterna>ve Hydro Workshop September 30, 2015

2 YCS Disclaimer This study was a desk-top exercise carried out by John Maissan. The poten>al project sites iden>fied in this report have not received any social, environmental, or economic evalua>on. YCS has not endorsed or passed judgment on any of the iden>fied poten>al project sites.

3 Presenta>on Outline Background Methodology Results - general Results A sites Conclusions Ques>ons & Discussion

4 Purpose of study To demonstrate that a fresh look through a different lens can iden>fy poten>al hydro sites not previously considered or discarded too soon Most of past hydro reconnaissance looked for conven>onal and larger hydro sites based on drainage basin size rather than sites where storage could be developed regardless of drainage basin size Study Area Carmacks to Faro corridor along the Robert Campbell Highway and the 138 kv transmission line. This corridor has not previously been studied by the author.

5 Pumped storage concept Background Use surplus renewable energy to pump water to a high reservoir for later use Use water from the high reservoir to generate electricity when most needed Up to 80% recovery of energy used in pumping Seasonal storage concept Store water during spring and summer for use in winter Aishihik a perfect example Benefits from pumped or seasonal storage for Yukon Make use of present summer surplus to meet winter energy and capacity requirements Allows beaer u>liza>on of possible new intermiaent or seasonal genera>on sources such as wind and solar, as well as run of river hydro (e.g. Whitehorse Rapids), making them more cost effec>ve

6 Methodology Step 1: obtain hard copy 1:50,000 topo maps for corridor Step 2: physically study the topography of maps in N-S slices from W to E for poten>al sites Minimum head of 300 feet (about 100 meters) Look for high eleva>on lakes and/or features like narrow canyons where dams could be located to create a reservoir Look for low eleva>on lakes or rivers close to the high eleva>on sites from which water could be pumped and into which water could be discharged For upper sites es>mate drainage basin (km2), es>mate upper lake or reservoir area (km2) Step 3: examine Water Survey of Canada flow data for study corridor to determine appropriate annual flow per km2 of drainage area

7 Methodology Step 4: calcula>ons Annual volume of water available Annual new energy (GWh) Power (MW) if run steady over 6 months (winter) Storage height for steady 5 MW over 6 months Storage height for steady 10 MW over 6 months Based on all of the preceding, rank all poten>al sites from A to D with A being the most promising. Please note: First Na>ons and other land tenure NOT considered in rankings Poten>al environmental impacts NOT considered Cost es>ma>ng was NOT part of the process (need more info) Step 5: develop conclusions and recommenda>ons

8 Results 27 poten>al sites iden>fied in sweep through corridor Drury Lake & Creek, considered by Yukon Energy and rejected, so was not considered further Three other sites known & considered to some degree in past (Bearfeed Creek, Anvil Creek, and Orchay Lakes & River) were retained for considera>on No sites considered to be slam dunks 5 sites judged to be A sites, 3 because they form a close cluster and two others 5 sites judged to be B sites; they will require some field inves>ga>on to determine if they have real poten>al Hydrology informa>on suggests about 240,000 m3 runoff per km2 per year on average for study area

9 Results A sites Claire Lake area (3 sites) 3 sites not previously iden>fied to author s knowledge: Claire Lake and Creek Smaller lake to west referred to as West Claire Lake by author Small lake to north referred to as North Claire Lake by author Loca>on about 45 km east of Carmacks, and about 18 km south of highway and 138 kv line Across Liale Salmon and Yukon River from highway this will be a challenge

10 Claire Lake area (1:50,000 topo por>on) Possible dam sites in blue North Claire Lake West Claire Lake Claire Lake

11 West Claire Lake aerial photo Possible dam site

12 Claire Lake aerial photo Possible dam sites

13 North Claire Lake Yukon River Possible dam site

14 Features West Claire Lake 500 feet (152 m) head to Yukon River Lake area 3 km2 Drainage basin 47 km2 3.7 GWh per year new energy O.85 MW 6 months of the year 5 MW for 6 months requires 72 feet (22m) of storage 10 MW for 6 months requires 145 feet (44m) of storage Claire Lake 500 feet (152 m) head to Yukon River Lake area 18 km2 Drainage basin 170 km2 12 to 14 GWh per year new energy 3+ MW 6 months of the year 5 MW for 6 months requires 12 feet (3.7m) of storage 10 MW for 6 months requires 24 feet (7.4m) of storage

15 Features North Claire Lake 700 feet (213 m) head to Yukon River Lake area 0.75 km2 Drainage basin 7 km2 0.8 GWh per year new energy O.2 MW 6 months of the year 5 MW for 6 months requires 200 feet (63m) of storage The challenge for the Claire Lake area will be the river crossings, par>cularly the Yukon River

16 Anvil Creek (4 th site) Tributary of Pelly River Previously known site About 30 km west of the Faro mine mill site (138 kv stepdown substa>on) About 45 km west of Faro community

17 Anvil Creek (1:50,000 topo por>on) Possible dam site Pelly River

18 Anvil Creek aerial photo Possible dam site Pelly River

19 Features 600 feet (183m) head to Pelly River Possible reservoir 6 km2 Drainage basin 832 km2 79 GWh per year new energy 18 MW power for 6 months (9 MW year-round) 5 MW for 6 months requires 30 feet (9.2m) storage on 6 km2 10 MW for 6 months requires 60 feet (18.3m) storage 18 MW for 6 months requires 108 feet (33m) storage on 6 km2 The challenge for this site will likely be the distance to infrastructure

20 Small lake east of Faro (5 th site) Small lake 9 km east of Faro Near exis>ng infrastructure, including roads, power line, and substa>on Headwater of Vangorda Creek but near Blind Creek and Pelly River

21 Faro Small lake near Faro (1:50,000 topo map por>on) Possible dam site

22 Small lake near Faro aerial photo Possible dam site

23 Features 1,400 feet (427m) of head to Pelly River Lake/reservoir area about 0.5 km2 Drainage basin 3 km GWh per year new energy 0.15 MW power for 6 months 5 MW power for 6 months requires 155 feet (47m) of storage The main challenge for this site will likely be its modest size poten>al

24 Other results There were 5 B sites, two previously considered and 3 new ones. The ability to develop storage is the main uncertainty in these sites, 100 foot contour lines leave a fair bit of uncertainty. Conclusions There are poten>al sites for seasonal or pumped storage hydro not previously documented This simple office study iden>fied poten>al sites that merit further inves>ga>on A fresh look for poten>al hydro development in Yukon through a lens of seasonal or pumped storage possibili>es, not much used in the past, is merited

25 Ques>ons? Discussion?