Hydroelectric power in New Zealand
Encyclopedia
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
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History
Reefton was the first town with a reticulated public electricity supply from a significant hydroelectric plant after the commissioning of the Reefton Power StationReefton Power Station
Reefton Power Station was the first power station to supply municipal electricity in the Southern Hemisphere.It supplied electricity to the town of Reefton in New Zealand. The power station turbine was run by water supplied from the Inangahua River via two tunnels and a headrace flume...
in 1888.
During the next twenty years private companies and local authorities established a number of stations, including Waipori
Lake Mahinerangi
Lake Mahinerangi is a small hydroelectric lake formed by a dam on the Waipori River 35 kilometres to the west of Dunedin in New Zealand's South Island....
in Otago and Horahora
Horahora Power Station
Horahora Power Station was an early hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River in New Zealand. It was the country’s first large-scale power station, completed in 1913. Initially built to service a gold mine, the power station was expanded to supply a significant part of the North Island...
on the Waikato River. The first government-developed station was Coleridge
Coleridge Power Station
The Coleridge Power Station is a hydroelectric facility at Lake Coleridge on the Rakaia River in Canterbury, New Zealand. The power station is owned and operated by TrustPower...
in Canterbury, opened in 1914.
Other significant early stations include Mangahao
Mangahao Power Station
Mangahao Power Station is a hydroelectric power station near the town of Shannon, New Zealand. It was opened in 1924 and is now operated by Todd Energy.It is one of the oldest large power stations in New Zealand.-References:*...
(1924), Arapuni
Arapuni Power Station
Arapuni Power Station is a hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is the seventh and penultimate hydroelectric power station on the Waikato River...
(1929), Tuai (1929) and Waitaki
Lake Waitaki
Lake Waitaki is the smallest, oldest and farthest downstream of the three man-made lakes of the Waitaki hydroelectric project in New Zealand's South Island. It lies below lakes Aviemore and Benmore on the Waitaki River, close to the town of Kurow...
(1935).
The plan in 1959 to raise the level of Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri is a lake in the South Island of New Zealand. Its name is Maori for "sorrowful heart", though this name is misapplied due to an early cartographical error...
to increase hydro-electric generation met with resistance, and the Save Manapouri Campaign
Save Manapouri Campaign
The Save Manapouri Campaign was an environmental campaign waged between 1959 and 1972 in New Zealand to prevent the raising of the levels of lakes Manapouri and Te Anau as part of the construction of the Manapouri Power Project....
became a milestone in environmental awareness. Later hydro schemes (such as the Clyde Dam
Clyde Dam
The Clyde Dam, New Zealand's third largest hydroelectric dam, is built on the Clutha River near the town of Clyde. It is owned and operated by Contact Energy.-History:...
) were also controversial, and in recent decades coal and gas-fired thermal stations have been approved in New Zealand, while renewable energy schemes
Renewable energy in New Zealand
Renewable energy in New Zealand is primarily from hydropower. In 2010, 74% of the electricity generated in New Zealand came from renewable sources, a ratio that has been falling for decades while load growth has been met primarily by natural gas-fired power stations...
in general have been turned down because of the unpopular effect they have on the environment.
Generation
Hydroelectric power accounts for 11% of the total primary energyPrimary energy
Primary energy is an energy form found in nature that has not been subjected to any conversion or transformation process. It is energy contained in raw fuels, and other forms of energy received as input to a system...
usage in New Zealand with imported oil and oil products making up 70% of the primary energy.
Hydroelectric power accounts for 57% of the total electricity generation in New Zealand.
Over the decade from 1997 hydroelectric power as a percentage of total net electricity generated went from 66% down to 55%. An increase in coal and gas for electricity generation accounted for the reduction in hydroelectric power as a percentage of the total.
Large hydroelectric power schemes have been built in the Central Plateau region
North Island Volcanic Plateau
The North Island Volcanic Plateau is a volcanic plateau covering much of central North Island of New Zealand with volcanoes, lava plateaus, and crater lakes....
of the North Island and in the MacKenzie Basin
Mackenzie Basin
The Mackenzie Basin , is an elliptical intermontane basin, located in the Mackenzie and Waitaki Districts, near the centre of the South Island of New Zealand. It is the largest such basin in New Zealand...
in the South Island, as well as a series of power stations on the Waikato River
Waikato River
The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand. In the North Island, it runs for 425 kilometres from the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and emptying into Lake Taupo, New Zealand's largest lake. It drains Taupo at the lake's northeastern edge, creates the...
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Proposed projects
There are a number of proposed hydroelectric power projects in New Zealand and, despite the demand for more renewable energy, there is opposition to some new hydroelectric projects.- Project AquaProject AquaProject Aqua is an abandoned hydroelectric scheme once proposed for the lower Waitaki River in New Zealand. Although the scheme had considerable support from some locals, it met with considerable opposition from others, and Meridian Energy decided in March 2004 not to go ahead with the project.The...
was a large scheme proposed by Meridian EnergyMeridian EnergyMeridian Energy Limited is a New Zealand state-owned electricity generator and retailer. The company generates the largest proportion of New Zealand's electricity, generating 32 percent of the country's electricity in the year ending 31 December 2009, and is the fourth-equal largest retailer, with...
on the Waitaki RiverWaitaki RiverThe Waitaki River is a large river in the South Island of New Zealand, some 110 km long. It is the major river of the Mackenzie Basin.It is a braided river which flows through Lake Benmore, Lake Aviemore and Lake Waitaki. These are ultimately fed by three large glacial lakes, Pukaki, Tekapo,...
but was dropped after significant opposition. The North Bank tunnelNorth Bank tunnelThe North Bank tunnel concept is a hydroelectric scheme being developed by Meridian Energy on the Waitaki River in Canterbury, New Zealand. The $993 million project is expected to produce an additional 1100 to 1400 GWh pa, and take up to 260 m³/s of water from Lake Waitaki...
concept is a new proposal being developed by Meridian Energy for a hydroelectric power scheme on the river. - The damming of the Mokihinui RiverMokihinui RiverThe Mokihinui River is a river located on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island, about 40 kilometres north of Westport.- Geography :The Mokihinui River's headwaters are located in the Glasgow Range and its mouth is on the Tasman Sea...
by Meridian EnergyMeridian EnergyMeridian Energy Limited is a New Zealand state-owned electricity generator and retailer. The company generates the largest proportion of New Zealand's electricity, generating 32 percent of the country's electricity in the year ending 31 December 2009, and is the fourth-equal largest retailer, with...
as part of the Mokihinui HydroMokihinui HydroThe Mokihunui Hydro is a proposed hydroelectric dam and power station planned for the Mokihinui River on the West Coast of New Zealand. The project is being developed by Meridian Energy and is expected to cost $300 million. In April 2010, resource consents to dam the Mokihinui River were granted to...
scheme is opposed on the basis that it would result in changes to recreation and flooding of historic sites and high value conservation land. - The Wairau Hydro SchemeWairau Hydro SchemeThe Wairau Hydro Scheme is a canal based hydroelectric project being developed by TrustPower on the Wairau River in Marlborough, New Zealand. The $280 million project will divert up to 60% of the river through 49 km of canals to generate up to 70 MW of electricity.- Resource consents :Resource...
is a canal and power station scheme, for which TrustPowerTrustPowerTrustPower Limited is a New Zealand electricity generation and electricity retailing company, listed on the New Zealand stock exchange.TrustPower is New Zealand's fifth largest electricity generator and the fourth largest electricity retailer , serving 260,000 customers throughout New Zealand...
was granted resource consentResource consentA resource consent is the authorisation given to certain activities or uses of natural and physical resources required under the New Zealand Resource Management Act . Some activities may either be specifically authorised by the RMA or be permitted activities authorised by rules in plans...
s in August 2008. This project is opposed by Green Party. - TrustPowerTrustPowerTrustPower Limited is a New Zealand electricity generation and electricity retailing company, listed on the New Zealand stock exchange.TrustPower is New Zealand's fifth largest electricity generator and the fourth largest electricity retailer , serving 260,000 customers throughout New Zealand...
proposes to develop a 46MW extension to the Arnold Power StationArnold Power StationThe Arnold Power Station is a hydroelectric facility fed from Lake Brunner on the Arnold River in West Coast, New Zealand, owned and operated by TrustPower. The plant is rated at 3 MW and has an average annual output of 25 GWh.- Development :...
on the West Coast. Resource consents were granted in November 2008.
Other proposals, at various planning stages, include schemes on the Matakitaki
Matakitaki River
The Matakitaki River is located in the north of New Zealand's South Island. An upper tributary of the Buller River, it flows north and west for 65 kilometres from its source north of the Lewis Pass, joining the Buller at Murchison...
, Matiri
Matiri River
The Matiri River is a river located in the northwest of New Zealand's South Island.It runs south for 30 kilometres from its headwaters west of Mount Owen in Kahurangi National Park to its confluence with the Buller River just below the town of Murchison. Halfway along its length, it passes through...
, Waimakariri
Waimakariri River
The Waimakariri River is the largest of the North Canterbury rivers, in the South Island of New Zealand. It flows for 151 kilometres in a generally southeastward direction from the Southern Alps across the Canterbury Plains to the Pacific Ocean....
, Clutha
Clutha River
The Clutha River / Mata-Au is the second longest river in New Zealand flowing south-southeast through Central and South Otago from Lake Wanaka in the Southern Alps to the Pacific Ocean, south west of Dunedin. It is the highest volume river in New Zealand, and the swiftest, with a catchment of ,...
, Kaituna
Kaituna River
The Kaituna River is located in the Bay of Plenty region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is the outflow from Lakes Rotorua and Rotoiti, and flows northwards for 45 kilometres, emptying into the Bay of Plenty near Te Puke...
and the Gowan River
Gowan River
The Gowan River is in the South Island of New Zealand. Its source is at Lake Rotoroa and travels 11 kilometres before feeding into the Buller River. Mixed farming and forestry occurs on both banks of the river...
s.
Environmental issues
There has been opposition to hydroelectric power on environmental grounds for many decades.The first nationwide environmental campaign in New Zealand was opposition to raising Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri is a lake in the South Island of New Zealand. Its name is Maori for "sorrowful heart", though this name is misapplied due to an early cartographical error...
for a power station to supply electricity to an aluminium smelter. The Save Manapouri Campaign
Save Manapouri Campaign
The Save Manapouri Campaign was an environmental campaign waged between 1959 and 1972 in New Zealand to prevent the raising of the levels of lakes Manapouri and Te Anau as part of the construction of the Manapouri Power Project....
was a success and the power station was built without raising the level of lake outside of its natural range.
The highly endangered Black Stilt
Black Stilt
The Black Stilt or Kakī , Himantopus novaezelandiae, is a large wader in the avocet and stilt family Recurvirostridae. The species is endemic to New Zealand. Adults are 40 cm long. They have very long red legs, a long thin black bill and black plumage...
, which nests on the braided river
Braided river
A braided river is one of a number of channel types and has a channel that consists of a network of small channels separated by small and often temporary islands called braid bars or, in British usage, aits or eyots. Braided streams occur in rivers with high slope and/or large sediment load...
s beds of the South Island, is threatened by changes in river flows as a result of new hydro dams and changes in flow regimes for existing dams. The Upper Waitaki Power Development posed a threat to the black stilt habitat and a programme was set up to lessen the threats.
See also
- Electricity sector in New ZealandElectricity sector in New ZealandThe electricity sector in New Zealand uses mainly renewable energy sources such as hydropower, geothermal power and increasingly wind energy. The 70% share of renewable energy sources makes New Zealand one of the lowest carbon dioxide emitting countries in terms of electricity generation....
- Renewable energy in New ZealandRenewable energy in New ZealandRenewable energy in New Zealand is primarily from hydropower. In 2010, 74% of the electricity generated in New Zealand came from renewable sources, a ratio that has been falling for decades while load growth has been met primarily by natural gas-fired power stations...
- List of power stations in New Zealand
External links
- Ministry of Economic Development - Electricity page