An Integrated Water Management
Strategy for Power Generation:
A Central Georgia Case Study
Larry Neal, PE, Vice President, AMEC E&I, Inc.
Leonard Ledbetter, PE, AMEC E&I, Inc.
Dean Alford, PE, Allied Energy Services
Proposed Plant Washington
 850-megawatt, coal-fired, base-load power plant
 Sponsored by Power4Georgians, a consortium of Georgia EMCs
 High-efficiency, “supercritical” thermodynamic design…more power

and lower emissions per pound of coal burned
1600-acre plant site in Washington County about 5 miles northeast of
Sandersville, Georgia…just below the “fall line”
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Plant Site
State of Georgia
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Plant Site
2010 Population Density
(Total Population: 9,687,653)
4
Plant Site
2050 Projected
Population Density
Data Source: U.S. Census
Bureau Data and State
Projections (Total
Population: 18,908,864)
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Plant Site
Major Aquifers
in Georgia
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Washington
County, Georgia
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Water Use Strategy
Innovative “conjunctive use” of surface water from the Oconee River
with backup groundwater use from the Cretaceous aquifer system
during seasonal low-flow periods
Water permits issued and finalized:
1. River withdrawal,
2. Groundwater withdrawal, and
3. NPDES discharge for non-contact cooling-tower blowdown
Plant-site wastewater and stormwater are captured and reused on
site…no stormwater discharges
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Water Use Strategy
Surface Water
Oconee River
(as available)
Dedicated Boiler Feed Water
and Potable Water
(0.12 MGD continuous)
Raw
water
storage
basins
Water
Treatment
Plant
Washington
13.62 MGD avg.
16.12 MGD pk.
Steam
Groundwater
Cretaceous Aquifer
Discharge
Equalization
Basin
Cooling Towers
(13.5 – 16.0 MGD)
Return 1.5 MGD
Oconee River
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Oconee River Streamflow Availability
4000
Streamflow in Cubic Feet per Second (cfs)
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Month
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
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Plant Operation on Surface and
Groundwater
1500
1000
750
Plant operation will depend on groundwater when storage volume is depleted to 60% capacity (~750 ac-ft) .
500
250
On Surface Water
On Groundwater
Min Volume for GW Trigger
Dec-06
Aug-06
Apr-06
Dec-05
Aug-05
Apr-05
Dec-04
Aug-04
Apr-04
Dec-03
Aug-03
Apr-03
Dec-02
Aug-02
Apr-02
Dec-01
Aug-01
May-01
0
Jan-01
Storage Volume (ac-ft)
1250
Time (days)
Jan. 2001–Dec. 2006
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Plant Operation on Surface and
Groundwater
1500
1000
750
Plant operation will depend on groundwater when storage volume is depleted to 60% capacity (~750 ac-ft) .
500
On Surface Water
250
On Groundwater
Min Volume for GW Trigger
16-Dec-09
18-Aug-09
20-Apr-09
21-Dec-08
23-Aug-08
25-Apr-08
27-Dec-07
29-Aug-07
1-May-07
0
1-Jan-07
Storage Volume (ac-ft)
1250
Time (days)
Jan. 2007 – Nov. 2009
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Groundwater Use Frequency Duration
Analysis (Avant Mine gage record)
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Water Supply “Yin and Yang”
 Average annual water withdrawal of 13.5 MGD with 1.5 MGD of


cooling-tower blowdown continuously returned to the river for net
consumptive use of 12 MGD but…
River flows are not adversely impacted during critical drought
conditions when groundwater is the backup source of plant water
supply and…
Groundwater aquifer storage recovers when river water is the source
of supply, most of the time.
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Groundwater Model Presentation, later
today
 At the 3:40 PM session this afternoon, Neven Kresic will present the
regional three-dimensional transient groundwater flow model
developed to evaluate impacts of the proposed groundwater
withdrawals and to select optimum locations and design parameters
for the 16 Plant Washington water supply wells.
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