A 50-year Shelburnearea resident has patented what he says would be a consistently reliable system to generate hydroelectric power.

Photo/WES KELLER NEW-DESIGN TURBINE: Inventor Willi Henkenhaf of the Shelburne area displays drawings of his double wheel water generator. He says it would use river currents, rather than dams, to produce hydroelectricity. Willi Henkenhaf, 86, has designed a two-wheel water turbine that he believes could be used in Canadian rivers without a need for dams, and without involving a risk of winter freeze-up.

As well, he says, it would pose no threat to fish habitat, and it would help keep the waterway clean as the direction of current would be altered by the wheels, such that floating debris would be forced to the shores of the river.

Although the system involves wheels in water, he says it shouldn't be compared with the oldtime waterwheels.

"So many things have to be different from the old ways. It's very different

to apply the current (in this way) to produce power."

Mr. Henkenhaf, who previously owned and later sold Primrose Plastics and a Shelburne company called Alpac, has incorporated a company he calls Henken Electric Power Inc. as one of the necessary steps toward obtaining large-scale funding. The other steps include obtaining formal engineering drawings, building a prototype, drafting a business plan, and acquiring an international patent.

He does have a Canadian patent pending, so he safely owns the design in this country.

However, there are rivers deep enough and currents strong enough all over the world to power electricity generators. Although Mr. Henkenhaf's concept, if proven practicable, would solve part of Ontario's energy problem, a major manufacturer would want to tap an international market.

Hydroelectric generation is not a new concept, nor are waterwheels a new idea. Mr. Henkenhaf acknowledges that, but says his invention overcomes some problems that might be associated with individual waterwheels. Vibration is one of the problems he says is overcome by his design.

The old waterwheels sat on a static base. Mr. Henkenhaf's design can be lowered below ice level in deep rivers, or raised higher, depending on the season and need. He says waterpower is the most reliable and possibly the least costly. Whereas rivers run constantly, he says, the wind isn't always blowing. Nuclear is expensive to build and is subject to shutdowns.

At 86, Mr. Henkenhaf's mind seems as sharp as it must have been in his Second World War military days. Physically, he describes a lifetime of accident proneness - and is writing a book to chronicle his saga of mishaps.