[a gentle breeze]

Hello, I just joined and have a question right off.

Does anyone know how to harness a small spring/creek for energy? And how to develop a fish pond?

Our flowing spring has been partly developed already, Our house water is from the spring, and the excess has been directed into a couple of 3 inch pipes, and has about 20GPM coming from one, a little less in the other. I am thinking of piping the greater one up a small hill to make a waterfall cascading into a pool, then digging a fish pond down further where the creek winds through a marsh. Even at 30 below the creek is flowing and has lots of fresh water shrimp, beetles and caddisfly larvae.

Thanks

 

[r.h. in okla.]

Welcom aboard mate! I'm not what all you can do to get energy from a spring but I do know that you can build a ram pump that will deliver the water to your man made fish pond. You can also build yourself a cool house over the spring and use it to keep certain foods cool during the summer such as fruits or drinks. As far as the stream and swamp land goes do not harm it anymore then what has happened to it already. Many people clear cut all the trees and brush right up to the very edge and end up loosing all the aquadic wildllife that is there. The streams need shade to survive plus with the removal of trees and vegetation, the banks will cave in and your stream will become shallower and may go underground. Thus leaving a bad scar that will takes generations to heal.

 

[a gentle breeze]

Thanks for your input.

There was orginally a pond at the head of the marsh, but the farmer before us filled it in, now there is just the creek winding through the marsh. I plan to re-establish the pond in the same place that it was before. After the creek leaves our land, it is on a "public reserve" then once it is on private land again, the landowners are blocking the creek off to build a pond on their property.

I agree with maintaining the integrity of the marsh, it is an important ecosystem, and offers habitat for all sorts of pheasant, ducks, plover and such, very "noisey" with life. In our climate, a year round creek is unusual, and wetland environment is reduced annually.. I have also thought about contacting ducks unlimited to see if they are interested in advising.

I will look further into channelling the water pressure from the springs, and let you know if I find anything interesting.

Shannon

 

[bgak47]

I believe that you could get some good advice from Ducks Unlimited, but you also need to check into any laws governing creeks & wetlands. Here in the States it can get pretty complicated!