The result: The hydropower companies on the Penobscot ended up producing at least as much clean electricity as before, while endangered Atlantic salmon have returned to the rivers. “The rhetoric has definitely shifted and is becoming more thoughtful,” said Malcolm Woolf, president of the National Hydropower Association. In theory, there’s potential for the United States to get much more energy from running water. There are numerous smaller dams built for irrigation or flood control that could be retrofitted with turbines to produce electricity. “We’re not talking about the Hoover Dams of old,” said Jose Zayas, a former Energy Department official who oversaw the study.

Source: New York Times October 13, 2020 09:56 UTC