Little Water, Big Energy

Big Government in the Way

When one hears the word Hydropower it’s natural to visualize a huge structure like the Hoover Dam or waterfalls like ones at Niagara, New York and Canada. No question these are impressive and provide literally tons of power.

But let’s take a look at some items that are a lot smaller but with the potential of providing literally More Tons of Power. They’re also hydropower. And they’re right in your back yard.
Actually the major hydroelectric dams, larger than 30 MW (that’s 30,000 kilowatts) make up only about eight (8%) percent of the total hydro power plants in the U.S. That’s according to the Hydroelectric Power Resources Database.

So where are the other 83%? They are low or small hydro power, from under 1 MW to 30 MW. And it’s in the small unit area that progress is stymied due to (1) a general public misunderstanding of the dynamics of hydropower and (2) government over-handling of the process by which permission to build and operate plants is given.

INL (Idaho Lab’s Water Energy Program) released a study in 2006 that showed 130,000 stream reaches around the continent suitable for projects between 10 kilowatts (KW) and 30 MW. INL estimated that even considering technological and environmental limitations, these projects could increase U.S. hydropower generation by more than 50% - How much coal and oil would that replace? Perhaps 15-20%.

Community Hydro of Plainfield, VT is encouraging developers to use the techniques of submerging weirs (small dams) to raise river water levels to create energy or to excavate power channels that divert water through a power house and back into the moving body of water.
Lori Barg, CEO of Community Hydro says that “obtaining federal and state permits for these projects can add $2,000 PER KILOWATT for a small hydro system, a figure that she calls ‘a project killer.’”

In Connecticut, Congressman Christopher Murphy has found it necessary to introduce legislation to congress to allow a Connecticut town to operate several dams that would provide power to approximately 2,000 homes – because a company that had the original license did not proceed with the project in the time required.

Further, according to Barg “Obtaining the necessary permits is such a deterrent. It’s important to have regulations, but I find myself going through 12 different agencies just to get a project off the ground. It doesn’t make sense and it’s not allowing Vermont (and all other states) to develop it’s abundant hydro resources.

ARE YOU LISTENING, MR PRESIDENT!