Breaking the ice keeps the lights on

While your furnace has been working overtime to keep you warm this winter, Ontario Power Generation’s icebreaker has been working to keep the power on.

Along with an icebreaker from the New York Power Authority, the Niagara Queen Two plays a key role in ensuring the power supply generated by the river continues to flow, by making sure the hydro tunnels don’t jam with ice.

With a knife-like bow, the Niagara Queen Two specializes in cutting ice formations. Its American counterpart’s bow is shaped more like a spoon, allowing the William H. Latham” to ride on top of the ice flow, using its weight to break through.

The ice cracks like thunder as the vessels work as a team to keep it from blocking the hydro tunnels that supply water to the power generating stations on both sides of the border.

The icebreakers are managed at the Niagara River control centre just upstream from the falls. The international control dam’s 18 gates open and close to manage the flow. As operating manager Peter Kowalski explains, “the on shift staff direct the ice breakers, they direct the diversions they direct the power companies in terms of how much water to take off the river.”

Kowalski says between April 1st and October 31st, 100,000 cubic feet of water per second must be released over the falls, and half of that amount the rest of the year. The remainder can be used to generate power.

In the winter, these icebreakers are key to making sure that happens. “If we didn’t address the ice stoppages through icebreaker use or diversion cuts, the ice could stop in front of a power intake.”

If it builds up enough, that could block the flow completely.

Today the vessels are breaking up ice that’s about 4 inches.  But there are times that ice can get up to 10 to 12 feet thick in this area.

Kowalski says even though it’s been a challenging year, the icebreakers have kept the ice stoppages to a minimum.