Cathaleen's Fall hydroelectric power station is a
hydroelectric plant
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...
located on the
River Erne
The River Erne ( , ga, Abhainn na hÉirne or ''An Éirne'') in the northwest of the island of Ireland, is the second-longest river in Ulster, flowing through Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and forming part of their border.
...
at
Ballyshannon
Ballyshannon () is a town in County Donegal, Ireland. It is located at the southern end of the county where the N3 from Dublin ends and the N15 crosses the River Erne. Incorporated in 1613, it is one of the oldest towns in Ireland.
Location
B ...
in
County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconn ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. It is owned and operated by the
ESB Group
The Electricity Supply Board (ESB; ga, Bord Soláthair an Leictreachais) is a state owned (95%; the rest are owned by employees) electricity company operating in the Republic of Ireland. While historically a monopoly, the ESB now operates as a ...
. The plant is also known as Ballyshannon.
[
]
Construction
Plans to dam the Erne for power had been considered in the 1920s, but it was not until 1946 that construction of dams started at two locations on the river between Belleek and Ballyshannon. Cathaleen's Fall was the larger and more downriver of the two.modernist
Modernism is both a philosophy, philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western world, Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new fo ...
style with curved cantilevered stairs
Cantilevered stairs, or floating stairs, are a type of staircase.
A cantilever is a beam, which is anchored at only one end. Thus cantilevered stairs have a "floating" appearance, and they may be composed of different materials, such as wood, g ...
and a glass roofed atrium.[
]
Generating capacity
The plant consists of two Kaplan turbine
The Kaplan turbine is a propeller-type water turbine which has adjustable blades. It was developed in 1913 by Austrian professor Viktor Kaplan, who combined automatically adjusted propeller blades with automatically adjusted wicket gates to ach ...
s each rated at on a head of water.[ The turbines, manufactured by KMW, spin at 187.5 r.p.m. and feed the grid at 110kV via their own 10.5kVA ]ASEA
''Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget'' (English translation: General Swedish Electrical Limited Company; Swedish abbreviation: ASEA) was a Swedish industrial company.
History
ASEA was founded in 1883 by Ludvig Fredholm in Västerås a ...
generators.[ The average output for the station is 206 GWh a year.][
]
Environmental impact
The construction of the plant had a major impact on the local beauty spot Assaroe Falls
Assaroe Falls ( ga, Eas Aoidh Ruadh, en, the waterfall of Red Hugh), also known as ''Cathaleen’s Falls'', was a waterfall on the River Erne near Ballyshannon, County Donegal, Ireland. It was named after Aodh Ruadh, who according to tradition ...
. The salmon run
''Salmon Run'' is a 1982 video game for the Atari 8-bit family created by Bill Williams and distributed via the Atari Program Exchange. ''Salmon Run'' was the first game in Williams's career, followed by a string of successes noted for their o ...
at the Falls was described by Richard Twiss in 1775 as "a scene of such a singular nature, as is not to be found elsewhere, and is as unique to Ireland as bullfights are to Spain."[
The plant has a fish pass to allow salmon runs and a hatchery that produces 500,000 smolts a year, mainly to stock the river. About 4 million elvers are also trapped here to improve ]eel
Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...
stocks in the catchment area.[
]
Political significance
The construction of the plant is important politically as it was the first act of major co-operation between Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
and Ireland since the latter's independence.[ Although there was some discussion in the government in the north about the project, joint interest in draining the Erne predates the scheme and subsequent co-operation has been remarkably free from political difficulties.][
]
The Weir
The site has been used by producers of Conor McPherson
Conor McPherson (born 6 August 1971) is an Irish playwright, screenwriter and director of stage and film. In recognition of his contribution to world theatre, McPherson was awarded a doctorate of Literature, Honoris Causa, in June 2013 by the Un ...
's ''The Weir
''The Weir'' is a play written by Conor McPherson in 1997. It was first produced at The Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in London, England, on 4 July 1997. It opened on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre on 1 April 1999. As well as several oth ...
'', with the weir at Cathaleen's Fall representing the fictional location in the play.[
]
References
{{Electricity generation in Ireland
Hydroelectric power stations in the Republic of Ireland
Gravity dams