Seattle is getting an $11 million refund from the federal government following FERC's reversal in a dispute over land use fees related to the city's Skagit River Hydroelectric Project. Read MoreIn Reversal, FERC OKs $11M Refund to Seattle in Land Use Fee Dispute
Top Stories
Climate change has likely resulted in diminishing snowmelt even during years of average snowpack, with long-range implications for Western water supplies, Arizona's top water official told a Senate hearing Oct. 6. Read MoreClimate Impact on Western Snowmelt Spotlighted
Hydroelectric generation is forecast to fall by 14 percent in 2021, the result of persistent drought, the Energy Information Administration said Sept. 23. Read MoreEIA Forecasts 14-Percent Cut in Nation's Hydro Output
Oakland-based CalWave announced Oct. 19 it had successfully deployed its x1 wave-energy platform offshore of San Diego for more than a month on its first at-sea, long-duration wave-energy pilot, operating fully submerged. Read MoreCalWave Deploys x1 Wave Energy Platform on Monthlong Test
The Columbia Basin Collaborative will hold its first meeting Nov. 30, when representatives on the integration-recommendations group will conduct a day-long virtual session. The newly formed group involves state, federal, tribal and stakeholder representation seeking to help develop a plan fo… Read MoreWater Power News and Notes
BPA will gain an additional $10 billion of borrowing authority, increasing it from $7.7 billion to $17.7 billion, under provisions of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill Congress passed Nov. 5 and President Joe Biden signed Nov. 15. Read MoreBPA Gets $10B Treasury Borrowing Bump Under Infrastructure Bill
Parties in a legal battle over the operation of federal dams in the Columbia Basin agreed to put the litigation on hold for nine months, and on Oct. 26, U.S. District Judge Michael Simon granted their request. Read MoreCRSO Litigation On Hold as Parties Work Toward Long-Term Solution
A new process to determine whether there are reasonable ways to replace the four lower Snake River dams was announced Oct. 22 in a joint statement by Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee. Read MoreMurray, Inslee Announce New Process for Analyzing Snake River Dam
Preliminary estimates of survival of wild juvenile salmon and steelhead from the Snake River were so low this year that despite a high degree of uncertainty in the estimates, fish managers should be talking about potential causes of the mortality, NOAA Fisheries representative Claire McGrath… Read MorePoor Survival Estimates for Fry Come With Uncertainty
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, Cowlitz Indian Tribe and three environmental groups filed requests to intervene in a FERC decision that will determine if PacifiCorp and Cowlitz County PUD are entitled to a "trial-type" hearing over the actions of federal agencies likely to re… Read MoreFoes of PacifiCorp's Lewis River Hearing Request Seek to Intervene
Federal defendants are appealing several U.S. District Court rulings from a lawsuit that resulted in new spill, deep drawdowns and the potential to use water from power pools at hydroelectric dams during critical winter months in order to protect fish in the Willamette Valley Project. Read MoreCorps, NMFS Take Willamette Valley Project Rulings to 9th Circuit
Three impacted First Nations in northwestern British Columbia and the regional district of Bulkley-Nechako are joining together in a bid to restore the health of the massive Nechako River and to return its flows to more historical levels. Read MoreB.C. Stakeholders Joining Forces to Rehabilitate Nechako River
PacifiCorp is eyeing 6,600 MW of pumped storage projects in Idaho, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming, according to preliminary permits filed with FERC on Oct. 14 that would allow it to evaluate the feasibility of 11 projects. Read MorePacifiCorp Mulls Developing 6,600 MW of Pumped Storage Projects