Water Energy
There are many ways to get water energy. It has been harnessed for
thousands of years in the form of dams and waterwheels that can turn
any number of devices from millstones to machinery. It is incredibly
efficient and constant when applied in the right way and a large enough
space. A small stream may not have enough power of consistent flow to
make it worth it, but big rivers can produce huge amounts of power.
Water energy can be harnessed by damming a river and allowing a lake
to form. The weight of the water pushes a lot of pressure through giant
turbines that spin to create electricity and the water is emitted back
into the river, usually much cooler than before because it has come
out of the bottom of a big lake and been cooled. The surface water is
still just as warm as the river feeding it, and many reservoirs are
used for recreation as well.
Other forms of water energy are vortex power which creates a vortex
and then harnesses its energy, tidal power which uses the movement of
the tides to generate electricity, wave power which collects the energy
coming in from waves, marine current power and underwater ocean thermal
power which collects heat from deep underwater volcanic vents.