Hydropower Reform Coalition - Midwest

FERC approves first ever in-river hydrokinetic project in the US

Rupak Thapaliya — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 09:16:20 -0600

Project: Mississippi Lock & Dam No 2 : P-4306

Through a license amendment to an existing project, the FERC has approved installation of hydrokinetic turbines at the Mississippi Lock and Dam Project #2 in Hastings, Minnesota.

The City of Hastings has partnered with Hydro Green Energy, a Houston based company, to install two turbines, each with a capacity of 35 kW. According to the City, the first turbine will be installed this month and the second in April 2009. The turbines will be placed on a hanging barge tethered to the existing dam.

Along with careful studies on the impacts of the project, the Commission has required that the City develop a project removal plan prior to installation of the turbines. Additionally, the licensee is also required to develop a plan for immediate shutdown of the project should the project pose any threat to the environment or the life, health, or property of the public.

Coalition members American Rivers, Trout Unlimited and American Whitewater had also participated in the license amendment.

Read the FERC press release.

A MN city seeks approval to operate first in-river hydrokinetic project

Rupak Thapaliya — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 13:56:37 -0500

Project: Mississippi Lock & Dam No 2 : P-4306

On April 24, 2008 City of Hastings, MN filed an application seeking to get an approval from the federal government to run an in-river hydrokinetic project. The proposed hydrokinetic project is to be located just downstream of Mississippi Lock and Dam # 2 in Hastings, MN about 30 miles southeast of Minneapolis, MN. The City of Hastings, which also holds the license for the currently operational 4MW hydroelectric project (P-4306) on the Lock and Dam is seeking for an amendment that would approve addition of two 35 kW hydrokinetic units, for a total installed capacity of 70 kW. If licensed this will be the first-ever in-stream hydrokinetic project in the US.

While the hydrokinetic technology looks promising, just like with any other new technology, it is important to proceed carefully and to address any ecological or recreational issues that may arise. FERC, the federal jurisdictional agency for in-river hydrokinetic projects, currently has a policy of issuing conditional licenses for test projects. In December 2007, FERC had issued a similar license for the Makah Bay Wave energy project offshore in Challam County, WA.

Read this article about the growth of hydrokinetic projects.

License issued for continued operation of Ottumwa

Rupak Thapaliya — Thu, 01 May 2008 10:39:36 -0500

Project: Ottumwa : P-925

On April 30, 2008 FERC issued a license for operation of the Ottumwa project located on Des Moines River in Ottumwa, IA- 80 miles southeast of Des Moines. This 3.25 MW project is operated as run-of-river consisting of a 18-foot high dam and three generating units.

The license is issued on a condition that the City of Ottumwa, which operates the project, will provide FERC with plans and schedules regarding dam safety operations within 6 months of issuance of this license. According to FERC, the licensee is currently in violation for not filing such plans.

The license also requires Ottumwa to file a recreation management plan within 6 months. The plan, according to FERC, should address access points for fishing at the dam and access sites at the Blackhawk and Haupert rivers.

License terminated for Marseilles project on Illinois River

Rupak Thapaliya — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 09:09:57 -0500

Project: Marseilles : P-12020

FERC issued an order on April 17, 2008 terminating the license for the 4.75 MW Marseilles Hydroelectric project that would have been built at the Marseilles Dam owned by the US Army Corps or Engineers. The license required Marseilles Hydropower LLC to start construction for the project within the first two years of issuance of license. However, Marseilles Hydropower failed to do so even after the end of extension of another two years.

Minnesota to buy power from Canada

Rupak Thapaliya — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 12:45:02 -0600

Minnesota is set to buy hydropower from Manitoba Power company in Canada, a move that could potentially have big implications on the future of power-deals between the US and Canada. Minnesota Power will purchase any surplus electricity from Manitoba Power, a utility based in Winnipeg, starting this year. Under the deal, the US utility will also buy 250 MW of electricity for 15 years starting from 2020. This would require building of hydroprojects and dams along with trans-boundary transmission lines.

Manitoba Power will have to build new hydroprojects to supply the additional 250 MW in future. The power company has laid eyes on two new hydroprojects- the Keeyask and the Conowapa, costing $3.5 billion $ 5 billion respectively.

In western Canada, the potential power deal between British Columbia and the northwestern US states, has raised concerns for building of new dams and hydroprojects. By the end of 2007, power developers in BC had applied for permits for 450 dams on over 300 rivers and streams.

License terminated for LeClaire Hydroproject

Rupak Thapaliya — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 08:59:23 -0600

Project: Leclaire : P-3862

On Jan 15, 2008, FERC terminated the license issued in 1994 for the proposed 24 MW LeClaire hydro to be located on the Mississippi river, two miles downstream from LeClaire, Iowa and adjacent to Hampton, IL. The proposed project was to be built at the Mississippi Lock and Dam No. 14.

The license required the City of LeClaire to start constructing the project two years from issuance of the license.

FERC recommends licensing of Ottumwa Hydroproject

Rupak Thapaliya — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 11:25:49 -0600

Project: Ottumwa : P-925

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission released the Environmental Assessment for the Ottumwa Hydropower Project (P-925) last month in which it recommended licensing of this 3.2 MW project located on the Des Moines river in the City of Ottumwa. In the EA, FERC has identified fish entrainment mortality as an "unavoidable adverse impact" but stated that this long term impact is expected to be minor.

Comments can be filed with the FERC secretary by Jan 21, 2008.

Taum Sauk, Missouri: Rebuild a failed hydropower reservoir?

Rebecca Sherman — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 15:39:08 -0500

Project: Taum Sauk : P-2277

July 9th was the deadline to provide comments on FERC's Environmental Assessment for the rebuilding of AmerenUE's Taum Sauk hydropower project, which failed in December 2005.

Citing concerns over whether the project should be built at all, or whether a fair review should be shifted to the relicensing (Taum Sauk's license expires in 2010), several groups protested the conclusions of the draft. Their comments are attached below.

As the Associated Press reported in its July 10th "Groups Criticize Ameren Taum Sauk Plans":

Environmental regulators and activists criticized parts of Ameren Corp.'s plan to rebuild the Taum Sauk reservoir in public comments submitted to federal regulators this week.

The comments were filed Monday and Tuesday with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which is deciding whether to let Ameren rebuild the mountaintop reservoir in rural southeast Missouri.

BACKGROUND

Early in the morning on December 14, 2005, the upper reservoir of the Taum Sauk Project failed, blowing out one wall of the earthen berm and flooding Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park with over one billion gallons of water. The catastrophic breach emptied the reservoir in 30 minutes. A park ranger and his family were seriously injured in the flood.

The Taum Sauk project operates as pumped storage. It has two reservoirs - one in the East Fork of the Black Rivers channel, the other carved out of a chopped-off mountain neighboring the river. When peak power is in demand, the top reservoir releases water into the lower reservoir; on off-peak hours, the water is pumped to the top reservoir. Often, pumped storage is a net-loss energy facility, generating power that is financially advantageous and using another source of power (commonly coal power) to return water to the upper reservoir.

In preparation for St. Louis's power needs on the morning of December 14th, project owner Ameren began filling the upper reservoir. However, the upper reservoir was known to have safety issues, and to compound the problem, Ameren overfilled the reservoir. In its weakened state, the reservoir collapsed. A review of the situation by dam safety officials suggests that the reservoir's permitted high-end levels were already too close to the lip of the reservoir; that the safety issues were not dealt with appropriately by regulators; and that the safety review conducted only three months before the collapse may have contained inaccurate data.

FERC conducted a review of the breach and fined the company for its error. The state of Missouri pursues its own claims, including criminal negligence, against the company.

Read FERC's website on Taum Sauk failure.

Read the Missouri DNR's coverage of the disaster, including photos.

Attachment	Size
American Rivers comments on Taum Sauk_July 2007.pdf	87.44 KB
Comments of Ozark Chapter_July 2007.doc	69 KB
Comments of MO Coalition_July 2007.doc	77.5 KB

Proposed license amendment on Carpenter-Remmel project

John Seebach — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 13:34:19 -0600

Project: Carpenter-Remmel : P-271

Entergy Arkansas has applied for a license amendment that would allow the construction of a marina and boardwalk at the Carpenter-Remmel project. Comments are due on January 12, 2007.

FERC issues preliminary permit for Mississippi Lock and Dam No. 21

John Seebach — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 09:07:55 -0600

FERC issued a preliminary permit for a proposed 17.7-MW project on the Mississippi River in Missouri and Illinois. The project would use an existing Corps of Engineers dam.

From the order (docket P-12724):

The proposed project would use the existing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Mississippi Lock and Dam No. 21, and consist of: (1) a proposed powerhouse containing 16 generating units with an installed capacity of 17.70 megawatts; (2) a proposed 12-mile-long, 69-kilovolt, or a proposed 1/4-mile-long, 34.5-kilovolt, or a proposed 3⁄4-mile-long, 138-kilovolt transmission line; and (3) appurtenant facilities. The average annual generation is estimated to be 69,185 megawatt hours.

FERC issues preliminary permit for Mississipi Lock and Dam No. 22

John Seebach — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 23:00:00 -0600

FERC issued a preliminary permit for another proposed 17.7-MW project on the Mississippi River in Missouri and Illinois. The project would use an existing Corps of Engineers dam.

This permit goes to the City of Quincy, Illinois. A private developer had filed a competing permit, but FERC gave preference to the municipal applicant in this case.

From the order (docket P-12725):

The project proposed by the City of Quincy would utilize the existing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Mississippi Lock and Dam No. 22, and would consist of: (1) a proposed powerhouse containing 16 generating units with a total installed capacity of 17.70 megawatts; (2) a proposed 10-mile-long, 69-kilovolt or a proposed 8-mile-long, 69-kilovolt or 11-mile-long, 34.5 kilovolt transmission line; and (3) appurtenant facilities. The average annual generation is estimated to be 81,429 megawatt hours.

FERC issues NEPA Scoping Document for Ottumwa project relicensing

John Seebach — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 11:05:47 -0600

Project: Ottumwa : P-925

FERC has issued a NEPA scoping document for the relicensing of the Ottumwa Project in Wapello County, Iowa. The deadline for comments is January 4, 2007. Section 5 of the scoping document explains how to submit comments.

For this project, FERC plans to issue a single Environmental Analysis (EA) with a 30-day public comment period to follow.

FERC issues preliminary permit for Mississipi Lock and Dam No. 20

John Seebach — Sun, 26 Nov 2006 23:00:00 -0600

FERC issued a preliminary permit for a proposed 17.63MW project on the Mississippi River in Missouri and Illinois. From FERC's Order Issuing Preliminary Permit (for docket P-12723):

On August 18, 2006, the City of Quincy, Illinois (permittee) filed an application for a three-year preliminary permit under Section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act (FPA) to study the proposed Mississippi Lock & Dam No. 20 Hydroelectric Project No. 12723. The project would be located at the existing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Mississippi Lock and Dam No. 20 on the Mississippi River, in Lewis, Missouri, and Adams Counties, Illinois.

The proposed project would use the existing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Mississippi Lock and Dam No. 20, and consist of: (1) a proposed powerhouse containing 16 generating units with an installed capacity of 17.63 megawatts; (2) a proposed 12-mile-long, 34.5-kilovolt or a proposed 4-mile-long, 69-kilovolt transmission line; and (3) appurtenant facilities. The average annual generation is estimated to be 68,527 megawatt hours.

FERC issues preliminary permit for Brandon Road project

John Seebach — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 16:48:07 -0600

FERC issued a preliminary permit for a proposed 6.6MW project on the Des Plaines River in Illinois. From FERC's Order Issuing Preliminary Permit (for docket P-12717):

On July 19, 2006, Northern Illinois Hydropower Corporation (permittee) filed an application for a three-year preliminary permit under Section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act (FPA) 1 to study the proposed Brandon Road Hydropower Project No. 12717. The project would be located on the Des Plaines River, in Will County, Illinois. The proposed project would utilize the existing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Brandon Road Lock and Dam and reservoir, and consist of: (1) a proposed powerhouse containing two generating units with a total generating capacity of 6.6 MW; (2) a proposed 1.5 mile-long, 34- kVA overhead transmission line; (3) a proposed switchyard; (4) a tailrace, and (5) appurtenant facilities. The project would have an estimated annual generation of approximately 55,166,000 kWh. The permittee plans to sell the generated energy.

FERC issues preliminary permit for Benton project

John Seebach — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 23:00:00 -0600

FERC issued a preliminary permit for a proposed 325kW project on the Elkhart River in Indiana. From FERC's order (for docket P-12701):

On June 28, 2006, Benton Hydroelectric Power LLC (permittee) filed an application for a three-year preliminary permit under Section 4(f) of the Federal Power Act (FPA) to study the proposed Benton Hydroelectric Project No. 12701. The project would be located on the Elkhart River, in Elkhart County, Indiana.

The proposed project would consist of: (1) the existing 130-foot-long, 5-foot-high Benton Dam owned by the Elkhart County Department of Parks and Recreation, (2) a proposed reconstructed powerhouse containing one proposed generating unit with an installed capacity of 325 kilowatts, (3) an existing 700-foot-long and 50-foot-wide tailrace, (4) an existing one-mile-long, 12.5 kilovolt transmission line, and (5) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project would have an average annual generation of 1.7 gigawatt-hours, which would be sold to a local utility.

FERC issues preliminary permit for Goshen project

John Seebach — Tue, 07 Nov 2006 23:00:00 -0600

FERC issued a preliminary permit for a proposed 500kW project on the Elkhart River in Indiana. From FERC's order (for docket P-12703):

The proposed project would consist of: (1) the existing 130-foot-wide, 5-foot-high Goshen Dam owned by the Elkhart County Parks and Recreation, (2) a proposed reconstructed powerhouse containing two proposed generating units with an installed capacity of 500 kilowatts, (3) an existing 100-foot-long and 50-foot-wide tailrace, (4) a proposed 60-foot-long, 12.5 kilovolt transmission line, and (5) appurtenant facilities. The proposed project would have an average annual generation of 2.575 gigawatt-hours, which would be sold to a local utility.

Missouri's Taum Sauk Pumped Storage facility breaches; loses 1 billion gallons of water in 20 minutes

John Seebach — Wed, 14 Dec 2005 06:00:00 -0600

Project: Taum Sauk : P-2277

At 5:12am on December 14, 2005, the upper reservoir of the Taum Sauk Pumped Storage hydropower project breached.

The failure released one billion gallons of water - a weight of 8 billion pounds, and more than the entire City of St. Louis consumes in two days - over twenty minutes. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is covering the breach in depth.

The project is in rural Missouri, about 120 miles southwest of St. Louis near Lesterville in Reynolds County. The flood crashed through the home of the superintendent of Johnson's Shut-in State Park, injuring his three children. No other injuries have been reported, although the town of Lesterville was temporarily evacuated.

The upper reservoir - which can hold 1.5 billion gallons of water - is not part of the Black River's riverbed. It actually sits in a carved-out berm on top of the aptly named Proffit Mountain.

AmerenUE, the project owner, reported that the reservoir has been leaking for two years, although they believed the problem was on the mend. No seismic activity or abnormal rainfall precipitated additional pressure to open the leaks and cause the breach.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission licenses this facility under docket P-2277. According to the docket, available online in FERC's eLibrary, FERC inspected the project's safety within the past three months and certified in October that the project was satisfactorily compliant. FERC also agreed with AmerenUE's assessment that the leaks from the floor of the upper reservoir appeared to be "dramatically" lessening.

The project had just begun the permitting process to receive a new license and begin compliance with modern environmental laws. AmerenUE planned to use the traditional licensing process, no longer available without special permission from FERC.

About Pumped Storage

The Taum Sauk project is called a "pumped storage" facility because it generates power on the margin. Pumped storage facilities have at least two reservoirs, one at higher elevation than the other. Dam managers release water from the higher reservoir when power is most needed and profitable, usually early morning, then pump water back from the lower reservoir to the upper reservoir at less profitable times.

It is not a closed system - the project loses water to evaporation, aquifers, seepage, and basic environmental requirements to keep water in the river below the project. When the water loss was greater, however, AmerenUE had simply not placed minimum flows in the Black River below the dams. Minimum flows were expected to be a core issue for locals in the upcoming licensing process.

For more information, please contact Dan Sherburne at the Missouri Coalition for the Environment.