The Hydropower Reform Coalition and the National Park Service are proud to release " Flows and Recreation: A Guide to Studies for River Professionals."

Oroville, CA -- Salmon and steelhead of the Feather River, along with the many people who fish and boat there, will benefit from an agreement covering operations of the Oroville hydroelectric project, to be signed today in Oroville. American Rivers praised settlement parties for reaching this agreement, which forms the basis of a new 50-year operating license for the project.

Coalition steering committee member American Whitewater has just released its River Stewardship Toolkit, a significant portion of which is dedicated to hydropower.

Located just one hour from the Charlotte, NC and Columbia, SC metropolitan areas, the Great Falls of the Catawba River has potential as a whitewater boating hotspot for the area. On October 23 and 24, a flow study conducted by Duke Power and attended by kayakers from throughout the region confirmed that Great Falls holds great promise as a highly coveted recreational boating stretch.

In late 2002, Duke Power applied to FERC to amend its license for the Catawba-Wateree project requesting modification of the project boundary to exclude two bypass reaches – stretches of riverbed where the natural water flow is diverted to generate power. One of these bypassed reaches was once the Great Falls of the Catawba, a series of high rapids neighboring a town which took the name Great Falls in regard for the local scenery.

FERC is seeking public comments on recreation usage at Mirant's Rio Project on New York's Mongaup River. In particular, the Commission is seeking comments on Mirant's 2004 Recreation Usage Report, which FERC will use to determine if "changes are needed to the whitewater releases at the project."