‘Water batteries’ could store solar and wind power for when it’s needed

The San Vicente reservoir in San Diego County stores water from as far away as the Colorado River. Pumping water into a smaller reservoir in the surrounding mountains could store excess solar power until it's needed, when the sun sets.

The San Diego County Water Authority has an unusual plan to use the city’s scenic San Vicente Reservoir to store solar power so it’s available after sunset. The project, and others like it, could help unlock America’s clean energy future.

Perhaps a decade from now, if all goes smoothly, large underground pipes will connect this lake to a new reservoir, a much smaller one, built in a nearby canyon about 1100 feet higher in elevation. When the sun is high in the sky, California’s abundant solar power will pump water into that upper reservoir.

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Source: NPR

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