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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 24, 1979)
Page 12 THE BATTALION WEDNESDAY. OCTOBER 24, 1979 100-millionth visitor sees Disney Kingdom United Press International LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Pigeons, balloons and fireworks swirled through the air to celebrate Kurt Miller’s admission to Walt Disney World as its 100-millionth visitor, but all the fanfare did was scare the 8-year-old boy. Kurt burst into tears in the raucous celebration that erupted Monday when he entered the amusement park. The band played loud music, hundreds of employees cheered and Mickey Mouse ran up to meet Kurt. “Did I do something wrong?” Kurt asked his mother. Kurt was reassured by presentation of a lifetime pass to Disney World and a silver replica of Cinderella’s Castle. He was all smiles by the time he climbed into an antique fire truck to join a parade down Main Street. Inflation proof Texas dams may be next energy sourci A BRAZOS VALLEY INSTITUTION HOUSE 779-7500 1803 Texas Ave. For an enjoyable meal with family and friends AN AGGIE FAVORITE i 1803 Texas Ave. Bryan United Press International If Texans could hook turbines and generators to all the existing dams in the state they could produce more than enough electricity to supply the needs of a city the size of San Antonio, according to a preliminary study by the Army Coips of Engi neers. And all at “inflation proof’ prices. Nationwide, the figures are likely to be even more staggering when all the states report their unused po tential for producing electricity as part of the three-year National Hy dropower study now being con ducted by the Corps of Engineers at the request of the Department of Energy. Dams which have gone unnoticed for decades in Texas and elsewhere now are coming under close gov ernment scrutiny in the quest for clean dependable energy sources to displace costly and finite supplies of fossil fuels. In many cases turbines and generators could be added with little change in existing dams. A preliminary estimate of power potential at 360 Texas sites shows they have a capacity to produce 2,248 megawatts of electricity, whereas San Antonio, the nation’s 10th largest city, used 1,700 megawatts during its peak period in the heat of late July. The 360-site figure is a “stage two” estimate the Corps of Engineers says probably will be refined downward once environmental and economic factors are plugged into the formula. Currently, Corps engineer Jana Loyd of Dallas said only 16 of Texas’ scores of dams ranging from small to huge are equipped to produce elec tricity and they generate only 321 megawatts. Some of the most notable electricity-producing dams in the state are Falcon Dam on the Rio Grande near Zapata, Denison Dam “It certainly can make a con tribution. In these times of energy shortage, we need to look at all alternatives on Lake Texoma, Sam Rayburn Dam, Toledo Bend Dam and Whit ney Dam, near Waco. But soon to be added will be Amistad Dam at Del Rio, which was built with penstocks in 1969 to allow for addition of turbines and generators later. L.E. Gross, manager of Medina Electric Cooperative which will share the Amistad dam electricity with South Texas Electric Coopera tive of Victoria, estimates that the hydro-electricity will amount to about 10 percent of the total his util ity supplies in 17 Southwest Texas Counties. It also will cost about one-half of what it costs to generate electricity with natural gas, said Gross. The two utilities entered into a 50-year contract with the federal govern ment for the Amistad project to pay for the electric generating units. Central Power & Light Co., which serves most of the cities in South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley, for years has been buying electricity from Falcon Dam which is equipped to produce 119 megawatts for the United States, and a like amount in Mexico. One day last week, CP&L spokesman Bob Noster said the util ity received 41 megawatts of elec tricity from Falcon Dam, amounting to about one hour of electricity at the peak period for the entire sys tem. “It certainly can make a con tribution. In these times of energy shortage, we need to look at all al ternatives,” Noster said. CP&L also purchases electricity from a series of six small hydro-dams operated by the Guadalupe-Bianco River Authority on the Guadalupe River below New Braunfels. Suprisingly, the six smaller dams — using the same water over and “You can go in and do some minor fixing up and you might all of a sudden get a little recre ational lake and the electricity that comes out of it is half the cost of what you receive from any other source." DON’T GRADUATE without talking to the Hughes Recruiter visiting your campus soon. Contact your placement office for interview dates. HUGHES Creating a new world with electronics AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER M/F over — produced a collective 9,775,000 kilowatt hours of electric ity during August, and 76,875,000 kilowatt hours since last Dec. 1, ac cording to LeRoy Goodson, director of planning for the authority in Se- guin. This cumulative 76,875,000 kilowatt hours compared favorably with the 83,841,000 kilowatt hours generated at the huge Toledo Bend Dam operated jointly by Gulf States Utilities, Louisiana Power and Light and Central Louisiana Electric. Federal dollars also are coming available to study and construct such projects, a government official said last week. In Washington, Department of , Energy spokesman Fred Appel said DOE is operating a $10 million fund to finance feasibility studies by local governments into whether their un used dams are suitable for produc ing electricity. Appel said President Jimmy Car ter last May also issued a “memorandum of understanding” to the heads of several agencies making available $300 million in government financing for loans or grants to construct hydropower facilities. “His (Carter’s) objective was 100 new hydro projects under construc tion by the end of 1981 and as many as 300 by 1985 which could yield up to 1,500 megawatts, which is a lot of power,” Appel said. “It was just an nounced this spring so the proposals are just coming in now. “One of the major initiatives is to exploit this potential because hy dropower is inflation proof and it’s environmentally benign. The main problem with hydro is not enough people know about it and when they find out about it they want to know whether their dam is suitable or not.” Appel said projects such as the one clue for construction at Amistad by early next year, “will be the biggest energy bargain toll Whenever you can j it’s the greatest often you’ve got an c dam that was used 30,1,1 ago for something else, "You can go in and dost fixing up and you i den get a little recreational^ the electricity that comesoJ “One of the major in is to exploit this pole cause hydropower h \ proof and it's envimi benign.” half the cost of what yon from any other source.’’ Gross said the new dropower fit in nicely in If the search for more sourceii for cities such as San , J “We’re going to ha look at more and more surfe and more and more rem whether the enviromnentilij it or not, just to take w domestic water supply,"th official said. Gross said the electricity and South Texas Electric & tives will begin receivii|| Amistad Dam in aboutta estimated be enough fulltime a city of about 20,1 lation. “All we have to worry long drought,’ he said. "A drought would have miniii but a longterm drought ml drastic effect because would affect the level of and the river flows.” Signs week Begin, parliament battle over policy, resignations Unite WASHIN m officer t sday the |e about not eve ill for il ishington [That hoi December Marc iso Lej era! Benjan bf Justice E gif a littl fed, we 1< ion prol :ggs sa United Press International JERUSALEM — Opposition Labor Party leader Shimon Peres demanded Tuesday the government step down and call new elections in a parliament debate that saw Prime Minister Menachem Begin s admin istration battling against five no- confidence motions. The debate began after Moshe Dayan formally quit a government weakened by his resignation, struggling with a setback to its pol icy of Jewish settlement and con fronted with challenges from the right and left to bring it down. “This government has only one path to take — to go and to go im mediately,” Peres urged from the rostrum of parliament at the start of an expected hours-long session. Peres called for new elections. Labor and other minority parties brought five no-confidence motions against Begin s besieged govern ment. They attacked on several t of a p hwest ^ alien d out w gs said. ac “This government has only one path to take — to go and to go immediately fronts, from the 100 percent infla tion rate to a settlement policy con demned by both left and right. Israel Radio said Agriculture Minister Ariel Sharon told Begin he would resign if the government obeys a supreme court ords mantle the settlementt!J Moreh in the occupied Wei! Israel Radio said. The Moreh settlers vowed to sb| Sharon s spokesman dei radio report, but said the and Begin exchanged harst on the subject of Elon Morej ron visited the settlement ei.« ■■ the day. CaSll Dayan entered the Knesd^ liament) chamber and wei mediately to Begin and hands. He bent to whisper gin's ear and Begin laughed ' N then walked away from the;- , ment bench where he sah™ ^ )ne of the fcorld. Officials Teresa, wl Uniti resignation and took a new the rear. TODAY ONLY ^ v V ° Buy 2 Pizzas and 3rd one Venezuela not in hurry ze last vs Price hike can wail the slur e to pay 1193,000 tl fficials law pro United Press International CARACAS, Venezuela —Venezuelan Energy and Mines Mil Humberto Calderon, whose country is a major U.S. foref supplier, said Tuesday he sees no need to hold an extraordrj OPEC meeting to revise oil prices. attainr die well [other id the r >r destitut of comparable value FREE Plus 2 FREE cokes with every pizza. “It would be better to wait until December,” whentheoils $2.00 OFF ■j&m PIZZA A SUBS Any 20” Pizza 846-3768 $1.00 OFF PIZZA & SUBS NOT VALID DURING ANY OTHER SPECIAL O FFER EXPIRES 11130/79 Any 17” Pizza or 14” Pizza EXPIRES 11130/79 will hold its ordinary ministerial conference, said Calderon. I The Venezuelan minister made the remark in a brief converse with reporters who asked him to comment on a reported requesj Iran to hold an emergency meeting to review world oil prices The December meeting of the Organization of Petroleum E: ing Countries is scheduled to be held in Caracas, Venezuela, America’s largest oil exporter and a founding member of tl nation cartel. Calderon told reporters that at present a process ofconsultafe 1 taking place among OPEC oil ministers “to establish what is majority opinion on an extraordinary meeting.” He said, however, that if a majority of OPEC members agree the need for an emergency meeting, Venezuela will not such a get-together. But he insisted that it is important for OPEC members toresfj the decisions of the last meeting, held in Geneva, where itwas lished that no further price amendments should come befo ordinary ministerial conference, scheduled for Dec. 17 in Cara OPEC, which controls approximately 80 percent of world oil holds two regular meetings each year. 1/ 846-3768 NOT VALID DURING ANY OTHER SPECIAL OFFER PIZZA &: $UBS $1.00 OFF Any Size Supreme Pizza $.50 OFF PIZZA & SUBS 846-3768 EXPIRES 11130179 NOT VALID DURING ANY OTHER SPECIAL OFFER Any 10” Pizza 846-3768 EXPIRES 11/30179 NOT VALID DURING ANY OTHER SPECIAL OFFER FREE DELIVERY 846-3768