How SRP uses water to create electricity for homes in central Arizona
Maricopa County is expected to grow by another 1.5 million people by 2040. That’s a huge number that only includes a portion of the state.
The Salt River Project is turning to hydropower, which turns water into energy, to plan for this influx of people and businesses.
“It’s a very reliable source as long as there is water,” said Tim Paul, the operations and maintenance supervisor at Stewart Mountain Dam.
Stewart Mountain Dam, which formed Saguaro Lake, is one of four dams SRP uses to produce hydropower energy. Every summer, the facility distributes more than 7,000 gallons of water.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, hydropower is created by water flow “through a pipe—also known as a penstock” which “then spins the blades in a turbine, which, in turn, spins a generator that ultimately produces electricity.”
“With us producing during the summer months about 10 megawatts on average, that’s about 2,500 homes,” Paul said.
The other three dams utilizing hydropower are Horse Mesa Dam, Mormon Flat Dam, and Roosevelt Dam.
All together, the dams produce power for over 60,000 homes.
“It’s a very quick source of energy. Some of these units only take three minutes to start up and can be at full load very fast,” Paul said.