Development opportunities |
Above: Snake River at Idaho Falls in the US. Tests have been carried out to see how the city’s hydropower plants can be made more stable and responsive during emergencies
j “If we can solve this, it opens up capabilities for a lot of communities that have small hydro systems like ours,” said Ben Jenkins, who is managing the project for Idaho Falls Power. “It helps Idaho Falls, but it could have a much broader impact across the national grid.”
3RS for US dams In July 2021, the National Hydropower Association
(NHA) applauded the announcement of the bipartisan infrastructure legislation negotiated in Congress. Recognising the importance of the health of rivers and hydropower, the bill contains key provisions negotiated between conservation groups, dam safety organisations, and the hydropower industry for investment in the rehabilitation, retrofit, and removal of dams determined by their owners to have reached the end of their useful life – known as the 3Rs. Notably, the bill creates a new grant programme
that provides US$553 million to support grid resilience, dam safety upgrades, and environmental enhancements at existing hydropower facilities. “Hydropower is an essential part of a climate solution, and we applaud Congress for recognising that it will play a prominent role in reaching the goal of a zero-carbon electricity grid,” said Malcolm Woolf, President and CEO of the National Hydropower Association. “The bill provides the tools needed to encourage investment in the existing hydropower fleet, which currently provides emission-free, reliable, and affordable electricity to an estimated 30 million American homes and businesses. Working with the river and climate communities, we have forged a path forward to optimise hydropower generation, bolster dam safety, and remove dams determined by their owners to have outlived their usefulness. This bill takes a significant leap forward to advancing the clean energy benefits of hydropower, and we look forward to working with Congress towards its final passage.” The Energy Infrastructure Act bolsters existing
hydropower incentive programmes including: ● US$125 million to incentivise adding hydropower generation to existing non-powered dams and conduits.
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● US$75 million for hydropower efficiency improvements, such as new low-head turbines. Additionally, the bill creates a demonstration project to assist the development of new pumped storage hydropower facilities by providing funding for project design, transmission studies, and power market assessments.
● US$800 million for dam safety measures includes rehabilitation of high hazard potential dams and safety projects to maintain, upgrade and repair dams.
● US$800 million for dam removal and in-stream barriers with the consent of the dam owner. On 10 August a coalition of American Rivers, National Hydropower Association, Association of State Dam Safety Officials, Hydropower Reform Coalition, American Whitewater, American Society of Civil Engineers, World Wildlife Fund, Low Impact Hydropower Institute and The Nature Conservancy, released a joint statement in response to passage of the bill. They said: “Passage of the infrastructure bill
represents a vital down payment to bring our nation’s dams into the 21st century, and we applaud the Senate’s bipartisan leadership. Dams are critical infrastructure, and we encourage the US House to move swiftly to pass this bill to revitalise river ecosystems, improve public safety and enhance hydropower’s ability to optimise generation efficiency and output.
“While this infrastructure bill brings us closer to
realising the rehabilitation, retrofit, and removal of America’s dams, our work isn’t done. Conservation groups, dam safety organisations, and the hydropower industry have also worked together with Congress to develop the bipartisan Twenty-First Century Dams Act, which makes a US$25.8 billion investment in enhancing the safety, grid resilience benefits, and power generating capacity of America’s existing dams while also providing historic funding to remove dams that are no longer necessary. We urge Congress make this bill a priority, as it will greatly contribute to climate resilience and stronger, safer communities.” ●
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