Moramo waterfalls are a series of stacked waterfalls and pools high in the mountains between Kendari, the capital of Southeast Sulawesi, and Kolono, an ocean bay which I am mapping for my research.
The falls at Moramo are special for two reasons. The first is the high amount of copper in the water. This turns the waters a milky azure blue. The second is the steep slopes where the waterfalls and pools are found.
Just last year, the local government decided to construct a mini-hydro electricity project at Moramo falls. Mini-hydro is one way to use high volumes of fast-moving water to generate electricity. For mini-hydro electricity or power plants to work, water needs to be diverted from a high elevation pool and brought to the power plant at a fast yet constant speed. How can you create something controlled and constant in a steep mountain landscape covered in tall trees and a jungle filled with monkeys and other creatures below? By containing the water in a pipe!
The pipe concentrates the water from a high elevation pool, takes it past four other pools and sends it through a power plant. This process generates ten kilowatts of electricity at a time. The bulbs you use at home hold 100 watt bulbs.
