The Hidden Engineering of Niagara Falls
3 days ago
- #Niagara Falls
- #Engineering
- #Hydropower
- Niagara Falls is a major tourist attraction with a vertical drop of over 50 meters and a flow rate exceeding 2800 cubic meters per second.
- The Niagara Peninsula features significant infrastructure, including the Welland Canal, which connects Lake Erie and Lake Ontario with eight locks to manage the elevation difference.
- Niagara Falls is a key site for hydropower, with tunnels diverting 50-75% of the river's flow to generate up to 5 gigawatts of electricity, managed by an international control dam.
- The flow over the falls is regulated to balance tourism and power generation, with more water allowed during peak tourist seasons.
- Pumped storage plants on both the US and Canadian sides store water at night to generate extra power during the day.
- Diversion of water for hydropower has slowed the erosion of the falls from 3 feet per year to about 1 foot per year.
- In 1969, the American Falls were temporarily shut off to study and stabilize the talus at their base, but the decision was made to leave it mostly unchanged.