The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is responsible for issuing operating licenses for thousands of hydropower dams across the country. The licenses are essentially 30- to 50- year permits with conditions for how the hydropower dams can generate power on our public waterways. The licensing process has a five-year schedule that involves applying modern environmental laws and new conditions to curb the project’s impacts to the river’s ecosystem and the public’s ability to utilize recreational and aesthetic resources. Specifically, the Electric Consumers Protection Act of 1986 states that non-power benefits, such as fish, wildlife, recreation, aesthetics, land use, water use and water quality must be considered when a license is issued or renewed. For paddlers who value recreational opportunities on rivers like the Tallulah (GA), Nisqually (WA), Bear (ID), NF Feather (CA), Black (WI) which now have scheduled releases, and support efforts currently underway to restore rivers with outdated dams like the Elwha (WA) and White Salmon (WA), this process is important.
Recently, FERC announced a plan to undertake a rulemaking that will review and potentially rewrite the licensing process. With several reform designs in midstream, all efforts are suddenly being channeled into the rulemaking — which will undoubtedly result in an entirely new way of doing business in hydropower licensing. As a steering committee member of the Hydropower Reform Coalition (HRC), American Whitewater has been an active participate in this process, working closely with members of the HRC to make sure that reforms retain opportunities for meaningful public input and respect the fact that these rivers are public waterways.
FERC’s procedural rulemaking was designed to improve coordination among resource agencies in the environmental review of hydro projects and timelines for developing license applications. This is generally a positive development and we support condensing the number of licensing processes to avoid adding complexity to an already complex system. We want to enhance public participation and encourage opportunities to reach settlement agreements. We think decisions at FERC should show greater transparency in analysis and, while these decisions should be made in a timely manner, no quality in the decision should be lost as a result. American Whitewater along with other members of the HRC worked collaboratively with agencies and industry to develop new procedural rules.
Unfortunately, some members of industry are seizing FERC’s rulemaking as an opportunity to make substantive changes to the Federal Power Act. These substantive changes include reducing the authority of individual resource agencies mandated to protect specific public resources such as fish, wildlife, and water resources. The industry requests go far beyond improving coordination among resource agencies and defining timelines. Industry’s so called "streamlining" of the relicensing process are simply thinly veiled attempts to remove public input and hamstring the resource agencies. This was not the intent of FERC’s rulemaking.
For now our objectives are to make sure that FERC remains on track and focused on the original intentions of the rulemaking. Once Congress is back in session we will need to stay alert for legislative attempts to change the Federal Power Act. We will post action alerts when the need arises, but you can also encourage your local paddling or river group to join the Hydropower Reform Coalition. Many of our affiliates are already members and it’s easy for your’s to join–any non-profit conservation or recreation organization may join the HRC by endorsing the Coalition’s platform.
If you wish to stay informed of the progress of this rulemaking and are interested in more specific information regarding our objectives and recommendations, you are encouraged to contact the Coordinator of the Hydropower Reform Coalition.
Rebecca Sherman, Coordinator
Hydropower Reform Coalition
1025 Vermont Ave NW
Suite 720
Washington, DC 20005
coordinator@hydroreform.org
(202) 347-7550
Six public meetings are scheduled during October and November 2002: Wisconsin, DC, New Hampshire, Tacoma, Sacramento, and Atlanta and will provide an important opportunity for public input. American Whitewater will be represented at these meetings either directly or by other members of the HRC. These meetings will occur in two parts with a morning and afternoon session.
Morning
Commission staff and agencies will make presentations. Afterwards, the public will be invited to offer general comments. At this time, FERC representatives would like to hear about specific and local concerns as well as more general ideas about the licensing process. Here we will have an opportunity to remind FERC that rivers are public resources and deserve the first order of protection.
Afternoon:
FERC will solicit more detailed comments and answers to questions. This session is geared toward stakeholders with previous licensing experience. FERC has requested that comments are presented in the form of problem/solution statements.
Talking Points Summary (more detailed talking points available in pdf)
- Develop Single Process – The Commission should aim for the development of one single licensing process. This rulemaking process should focus on reform of the traditional licensing process and incorporate the best elements of the alternative process – collaboration, early public involvement, input on study designs, early development of NEPA documents, momentum toward settlement.
- Enhance Public Participation – Any new process should seek to enhance the minimum level of public participation above what is required under existing rules. The rivers are a publicly owned resource and therefore the public should be required to be brought into the process from the onset.
- Facilitate Settlement– The desired outcome of a new relicensing process should be joint settlement rather than Commission arbitration of a contested proceeding. Any new process should have a structure that leads to such an outcome.
- Improve Transparency – All analysis and process should be open and transparent.
- Timeliness Without Sacrificing Thoroughness – Issuing licenses in a timely manner leads to early implementation of environmental mitigation, which is good. However, timely licenses that are based on inadequate information can be more harmful than delay, especially when decisions are made for 30 to 50 year terms. Therefore it is essential that the Commission design a process that promotes both a timely licensing as well as a very thorough one from the onset.
- Support the basic elements of the National Review Group proposal – While there may be disagreements over the details of the NRG proposal, most NGOs agree that the following components of that proposal are fundamental to improving the licensing process: earlier FERC involvement, improved interagency cooperation, coordination of NEPA and application development, have current conditions thoroughly researched and described, design a process with a minimum of 2 field seasons, develop a more robust study dispute resolution process, and publication of draft license articles by FERC staff
- Better Coordination with State Processes
Meeting Locations and Dates:
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Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Courtyard Milwaukee Downtown
300 W. Michigan St.
414-291-4122
Public: October 16, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Tribes: October 17, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Contact:
Mike Engleson, River Alliance of Wisconsin
(608) 257-2424 or wisrivers@wisconsinrivers.org
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Atlanta, Georgia
Marriot Century Center
2000 Century Boulevard
404-325-0000
Public: October 24, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Tribes: October 23, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Contact:
Brad McLane, Alabama Rivers Alliance
(205) 322-6397 or bmclane@alabamarivers.org
Dave Sligh, American Rivers, Southeast Office
(423) 265-7505 or dsligh@americanrivers.org
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Washington, D.C.
Commission-Sponsored Public Forum
Commission Meeting Room
Commission Headquarters
888 First Street, NE
November 7, 2002, 9am – 4 pm
Contact:
Rebecca Sherman, Coordinator, Hydropower Reform Coalition
(202) 347-7550, x3052 or coordinator@hydroreform.org
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Bedford, New Hampshire
Wayfarer Inn
121 S. River Road
603-622-3766
Tribes: November 13, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Public: November 14, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Contact:
Ken Kimball, Appalachian Mountain Club
(603) 466-2721 x199 or kkimball@amcinfo.org
or
Tom Christopher, New England FLOW
(978) 537-4285 or tchris@tiac.net
or
Bruce Carpenter, New York Rivers United
(315) 339-2097 or bruce_carpenter@newyorkriversunited.org
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Sacramento, California
Sheraton Grand Sacramento
1230 J Street
916-341-3600
Public: November 19, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Tribes: November 20, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Contact:
Steve Wald, California Hydropower Reform Coalition
(510) 644-2900 x105 or swald@calhrc.org
or
Kelly Catlett, Friends of the River
(916) 442-3155 or kelly@friendsoftheriver.org
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Tacoma, Washington
Sheraton Tacoma
1320 Broadway Plaza
253-572-3200
Public: November 22, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Tribes: November 21, 2002, 9am – 4pm
Contact:
Brett Swift, American Rivers, Northwest Office
(503) 827-8648 or bswift@americanrivers.org
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