Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1921-05-26

Il
Gal l4...=J is to generate at the start 2lOoOO
horsepower and, later on, 4I2ooo
horsepower Recognizing the prospective greater
demands for electricity in the course of the next
few years, the projects discussed in the current
issue of timely interest. In the order or thelr
preference they are first, dam few miles be-
low the Falls which will make use of the full hoW
of the river, and second, an installation at Goat
Island which, of necessity, would have to absorb
waters that might diminish the mpressiveness of
the present Falls.
SO says the editor of the Scientific American in
an editorial note on an article in the Scientific
American with the title Making the Most of Nj
agara." Robert G.. Skerrett furnishes both the
text and the diagrams herewith reproduced.
AS everybody knows, Niagara Falls is natural
wonder Of beauty and power over which the ma
ture lovers and the commercial interests have
been fighting for years. The article follows:
The Niagara river will inevitably be utilized
more extensively than for the development
of hydrd-electric energy. The rush Of those de-
scending waters must be put to greater practical
service wherever feasible without seriously impair
ing the scenic beauty of the Falls. Upon both
of the governments concerned the people are max
ing insistent demands for bigger blocks Of power
and the authorities are listening sympathetically
because of the logical promise of vast savings
through the corresponding non-use of COAL No
fewer than ten projects for water rights on the
Niagara river have been fled with the United
States federal power commission and among them
are two that sufficiently matured to warrant
discussion.
Both Of these contemplated hyroelectric propo-
stions may well be considered as a single CO.
ordinated system, for they have been conceived
and espoused by the same men, l. e., T. Kennard
Thomson, c. E., of New York City, and Peter A.
Porter, Of Niagara Falls. The dual project en-
braces first the boring of tunnels through the
massive foundation of Goat Island so that water
10 Lad ~I,
ators located near the river level on the down.
stream end of the island, and, next, the rearing
of dam squarely athwart the river at point
2-3 miles below the Falls, thus submergng the
present Rapids. The Goat island tunnels would
lie wholly on American territory, but the dam
would stretch from shore to shore in the Gorge
and be international in character. However, the
citizens Of this country would benefit by both Of
these engineering undertakings
According to the existing treaty arrangement
between the neighboring countries, it is not now
permissible to divert for power purposes above
Niagara Falls more than 5000 cubic feet Of wa
ter second and for certain reasons the Ameri-
can allotment of this is 10000 cubic feet. 1t has
been proposed that the combined total be raised
to $4,000 cubic feet and that each Of the nations
share equally. In other words, Canada would
have 1000 cubic feet more than Is the case today
while our volume Of water would be doubled. Ii
the suggestion be adopted, the problem will re-
solve itself into governmental selection of such
Of the proposed installations as would be apt
least to mar the great natural spectacle, while
giving the largest yields in energy and involving
the fewest engineering difficulties Of debatable
sort. The Goat island scheme meets these desid-
erata in many particulars, and makes instant ap-
peal to us inasmuch as it would be located on
our side Of the river.
Goat Island would not have endured for ages
in the erosive sweep of the Niagara but for the
fact that II is an integral part of the massive
ledge there underlying the river, and this has
very important bearing upon power development
at that point From the crest to the base Of the
Horseshoe falls is a drop of about 1875 feet. but
the plan is to increase this head to substantially
200 feet by lengthening Goat island. From east
to west, along its major axis, the island Is today
$500 feet long, but there is nothing to prevent
extending it 900 feet by raising above the surface
Of the river the slightly submerged area at the
upstream end.
BY doing this It would then be practicable to
drive the tunnels from water level to water level
at q moderate angle and so insure a difference in
drop of about 200 feet between the intake and
the discharge ports Of the conduits. At the same
time, the bores In their entirety could be cut
through solid rock. Each aqueduct, when finished
with concrete lining, would have internal
diameter Of 20 feet, and the descending waters led
by 1t would be capable of developing 100000 horse
power through the medium Of suitable turbo-gen-
orators. As projected only two tunnels would
be excavated at the outset, furnishing 100000
horsepower but the physical conditions will ul-
timately permit larger number.
AS can be seen from one of the opening page
Illustrations In sinking the tunnels 1t would be q
relatively easy matter to rear cofferdams to hold
the river at bay during construction work; and
the only subaqueous excavating of rock would be