Dam safety | A 21st century act US Senators have introduced a bill to improve dam safety, modernize hydropower and restore rivers
IN JULY 2021, US Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) introduced the Twenty-First Century Dams Act, a bill that would invest $21.1 billion to enhance the safety, grid resilience benefits and power generating capacity of America’s dams and provide historic funding to remove dams that are no longer necessary. Companion legislation was introduced previously in the House of Representatives by Representatives Annie Kuster (D-N.H.) and Don Young (R-Alaska). In the US there are more than 90,000 dams, including 6000 “high-hazard” dams that have poor, unsatisfactory or unknown safety ratings that without rehabilitation would pose a threat to human life if they fail. Many dams that generate hydropower are aging and need upgrades to continue providing an essential baseload source of renewable energy. Hydropower is responsible for 6% of US electricity production and more than 90% of US electricity storage capacity. Additionally, some of the nation’s dams have outlived their useful life and should be removed to restore rivers to their natural state. “It’s shocking that in California alone, we have 89 dams
that are in less than satisfactory condition and pose a serious risk to the neighboring communties,” said Senator Feinstein. “The cost – particularly to human life – of a dam collapse would be catastrophic. We can’t ignore this problem. Our bill takes immediate action to repair and modernize certain existing dams and remove those that have outlived their usefulness. It would also make a significant investment in developing more hydropower generation, a critical part of a comprehensive climate strategy and meeting our energy needs.” “There’s no question about it: we must do more to modernize our nation’s water and power infrastructure to protect public health, safety, and our environment,” said Senator Padilla. “This bill will help prevent another Oroville, improve grid resiliency, modernize existing hydropower generation, and improve the health of our nation’s rivers and ecosystems. By removing harmful and obsolete dams in California that threaten endangered species, and bolstering the safety and clean energy potential of existing dams, we can ensure healthy ecosystems, keep our communities safe, and combat the climate crisis. This legislation was born out of a landmark agreement between industry and the environmental community – the type of coalitions we need to build as we move forward with ambitious infrastructure legislation that protects communities and addresses the climate crisis.” “In order to support the production of hydropower in
Oregon and across the U.S., there must be a concerted effort to modernize dams across every nook and cranny of the country,” said Senator Wyden. “The Twenty- First Century Dams Act is a bipartisan push to do just that, investing over $25 billion to enhance dam safety, improve hydroelectric generation and reconnect thousands of miles of streams through voluntary removal of aging dams.”
28 | August 2021 |
www.waterpowermagazine.com “We have the opportunity to build stronger,
more resilient water infrastructure and hydropower systems in the United States, and the Twenty-First Century Dams Act advances an innovative plan to rehabilitate, retrofit or remove U.S. dams (the 3Rs) to bolster clean energy production while taking steps to conserve our waterways for generations to come,” said Representative Kuster. “It is rare to see such coordination and unified problem-solving from across industries, and I was proud to introduce this legislation in the House to enhance America’s clean energy production and the health of our nation’s rivers.” “The state of Alaska has tremendous hydroelectric
potential, and through it, we can provide our rural and remote communities with reliable, renewable energy,” said Representative Young. “Unfortunately, our state is home to dams in urgent need of repair and retrofitting, in addition to dams that need to be removed outright. I was proud to join Congresswoman Annie Kuster last week to introduce the Twenty-First Century Dams Act, which will make significant investments to achieve these goals. I have long supported utilizing Alaska’s vast hydropower capabilities, and was proud to support projects such as the Terror Lake Hydroelectric Plant and the Swan Lake Hydroelectric Project. Our bill will help us truly unleash Alaska’s hydro momentum so that we can not only diversify our energy portfolio, but secure clean, affordable energy for future generations. I call on my friends on both sides of the aisle and in both chambers of Congress to help us get the Twenty-First Century Dams Act across the finish line.” The Twenty-First Century Dams Act would:
● Improve public safety: Invests in state dam safety capabilities, expands grant funding for the rehabilitation of existing dams and makes available low-interest loans to rehabilitate non-federal dams.
● Enhance clean energy production and grid resilience: Invests in existing federal dams to improve their safety and renewable energy generating capacity.
● Restore river ecosystems: Authorizes an interagency and stakeholder advisory committee to help administer a public source of climate resilience and conservation funding to reconnect 10,000 miles of rivers through the removal of 1,000 dams with owner consent.
This legislation builds on the negotiations and lessons learned from Stanford University’s Uncommon Dialogue and puts them into action to ensure dams are safe for our communities and designed and operated to meet the climate, economic, and environmental needs of the 21st century. The bill is supported by: The Nature Conservancy, American Society of Civil Engineers, Low Impact Hydropower Institute, American Rivers, Association of State Dam Safety Officials, Hydropower Reform Coalition, National Hydropower Association, World Wildlife Fund, Hydropower Foundation, Rye Development, Hydropower Reform Coalition, Union of Concerned Scientists and Chesapeake Bay Foundation. ●
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