A Citizen's Guide to Dams, Hydropower, and River Restoration in ...

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Hydroelectric Power in MaineThe electricity generatedby just two ofthe natural gas powerplants built in Maineduring the past fewyears is more thanthe total productionof all of the operatinghydroelectric damsbuilt in Maine overthe past 200 years.Number of Dams5045403530252015105046Of the 750 dams in Maine greater than two feet high, 111 produceelectricity. Virtually all of these dams were built prior to theexistence of environmental laws. Thus, there was little considerationat the time of construction of their impact on rivers andfisheries. The overwhelming majority of dams in Maine do notproduce power. According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,only three percent of the dams nationwide produce electricity.The electrical power system in New England has changeddramatically in recent years. Electricity generated in Maine goesinto a region-wide electrical grid involving more than 500 generatingfacilities and 8,000 miles of transmission line, servicing 6.5million customers in a six state region.The relative importance of hydropower dams also haschanged enormously over the past 100 years. Althoughdams once were a leading form of electrical powerPower Capacity of Maine Dams2676% of Maine’s hydropower comes fromthe State’s 24 largest dams. Most dams inthe state have less than 10 MW capacity.150-1 MW 1-5 MW 5-10 MW 10-20 MW 20-100 MWGenerating Capacity Per Dam168Above: Wyman Dam onthe Kennebec River isthe second largesthydropower facility inthe state, with agenerating capacity of72 megawatts (MW).Left: Mattaceunk Dam,on the Penobscot River,has installed capacity of19.2 MW.generation in America, dams currently provide only about 10% ofthe nation’s electricity and about 6% of the electricity within NewEngland.Coal, oil, nuclear, and natural gas plants now dwarf dams interms of the amount of electricity generated in New England. As anexample, the electricity generated by just two of the natural gaspower plants built in Maine during the past few years exceeds thetotal production of all of the operating hydroelectric damsbuilt in Maine over the past 200 years.20 A Citizen’s Guide to River Restoration
Most of Maine’s operating hydroelectric dams are smallfacilities; 78% of Maine’s hydroelectric dams have a generatingcapacity of less than 10 MW. By comparison, the Calpine naturalgas plant in Westbrook has a capacity of 525 MW. Several smallhydropower dams in Maine have become uneconomic to operatein recent years and have been shut down.Although hydropower is not the dominant formof electricity it once was, it remains a significantform of electricity nonetheless. Unlike coal, oil ornatural gas, hydropower dams do not produce otherforms of air pollution or nuclear, toxic, or hazardouswastes. Hydropower dams and non-generating damsdo, however, have other significant environmentalimpacts, as discussed elsewhere (see pages 8-9).Because hydropower remains a significant formof power, major efforts have been made in recentyears to reduce the environmental impacts ofexisting dams so that they can continue to produceelectricity. These efforts include the installation offish passage systems, modifications in water flow,fish stocking programs, and habitat protectionagreements. For hydropowerdams licensed by the FederalEnergy Regulatory Commission,these changes generally havebeen made within the contextof the relicensing process(see sidebar).Efforts to reduce the environmental impacts,of hydropower dams include the installation offish passage systems, modifications in waterflow, fish stocking programs, and habitatprotection agreements.Above: Milford Dam, locatedbetween Milford and Old Town onthe Penobscot River, has 6.4MW ofinstalled capacity, generating enoughelectricity for approximately 5,000households. For reference, Maine hasan estimated 518,200 households,according to the 2000 Census.Left: Calpine’s natural gas-firedWestbrook Energy Center hasinstalled capacity of 525 MW.Dam OperatingLicensesMost hydropower dams inMaine have been licensed tooperate by the Federal EnergyRegulatory Commission. Theselicenses provide authority togenerate power through the useof a public resource – a river –generally for 20-50 years. Manyof the original licenses grantedto dams across America haveexpired in recent years. Therelicensing process allowsfederal and state agencies,conservation organizations, thepublic, and other interestedparties to review the environmentalimpacts of dams andpropose ways to mitigate thoseimpacts as conditions of a newlicense. In the case of theEdwards Dam, FERC decidedthat the most appropriatemitigation was dam removal.A Citizen’s Guide to River Restoration 21
Page 4 and 5: Toward a New Balance in the 21st Ce
Page 6 and 7: The Dams of MaineDams played a crit
Page 8 and 9: The Damming of Maine’s RiversSalm
Page 10 and 11: Environmental Impacts of DamsFrom t
Page 12 and 13: Dam RemovalsRemoval of theseven-foo
Page 14 and 15: Dam Removals: Three SuccessesThe Ke
Page 16 and 17: Delaine Nye, AugustaCity Councilwom
Page 18 and 19: Dam Removals: Three SuccessesThe Ea
Page 20 and 21: Dam Removals: Three SuccessesSouada
Page 24 and 25: Fish PassageAbove: Alewives arestop
Page 26 and 27: Celebrating Maine’s RiversDam rem
Page 28 and 29: Toward a New Balance for Maine’s
Page 30 and 31: ResourcesDam Removal: A Citizen’s
Page 32: NATURALRESOURCESCOUNCIL OF MAINE3 W

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