In a partnership between advocacy groups, outfitters, and hydropower utilities, Brookfield Renewable Energy and TransCanada Hydro Northeast announced support for #OptOutside, a national campaign started by REI designed to encourage outdoor recreation rather than shopping mall exploration on Black Friday after Thanksgiving. In support of #OptOutside and at the request of American Whitewater, the utilities will provide whitewater flows on the Deerfield below the Fife Brook Dam between 11-1 on November 27th.

 

Brookfield and TransCanada share responsibility for providing whitewater releases on the Deerfield River in western Massachusetts. Each year, the utilities provide 106 releases on Fife Brook and 32 releases on the Dryway sections of the river as part of their hydropower license and a 1994 Settlement Agreement negotiated by American Whitewater and its affiliates New England FLOW and Appalachian Mountain Club. The utilities have worked with outfitters and advocacy groups, including AW, over the past two decades to schedule releases and support outdoor recreation. Brookfield is currently seeking to relicense the Bear Swamp Pumped Storage Project on the Deerfield, and will be working with resource agencies, advocacy groups and other stakeholders to address fisheries concerns, recreation and other resource issues on the Deerfield. 

 

AW wants to thank Brookfield and TransCanada for their support for the #OptOutside campaign.