It is beyond credible dispute that the planet is heating up at an alarming rate and that the ecological effects of global warming pose real questions about the continued viability of human and non-human life on earth in the not-too-distant future. A primary cause of global warming is the burning of carbon-based fuels, mainly coal, natural gas, and oil, to generate electricity and for other purposes. Clearly, more must be done, and done soon, to stave off the worst impacts of global warming.
Drastically reducing global carbon emissions features prominently in any serious proposal to combat global warming. However, given that humans are extremely unlikely to willingly give up the massive recreational, economic, health, and quality-of-life benefits that come from having access to plentiful, cheap, and reliable electricity, any reductions in carbon-generated electricity will likely have to be made up for by massive increases in non-carbon-based means of generation, such as wind, solar, and hydroelectricity. There is also an important role for distributed generation of electricity in this new energy future, albeit one with significant financing challenges that must be addressed. Distributed generation is the production of electricity using small-scale generation facilities at or near the point of consumption.
Electricity generation from small hydro installations is a form of distributed generation. A recent study of the potential of small hydro estimated that small hydro in the U.S. has the capacity to provide more than 100,000 MW of new electricity production annually. Although wind and solar energy are driving most of renewable energy’s growth in America, adapting U.S. energy law and policy to effectively confront the trends of climate change will also require rethinking the future of hydropower, including small hydropower, which may offer a less contentious approach to tapping America’s vast hydro resource.
Aside from nuclear power, hydropower is the most heavily regulated electricity generating source in the U.S. The current regulations governing small hydropower discourage investment and unnecessarily burden developers by requiring them to navigate a costly, complex, and time-consuming regulatory framework that may be appropriate for large dams given the environmental and ecological damage such dams can cause, but are regulatory overkill for the comparatively tiny impacts from a small hydro project. With low-impact small hydropower technologies offering a politically-promising approach to utilizing untapped hydropower potential in America, while also allowing fisheries to thrive, rivers to run free, and the environment to remain largely unaltered, this regulatory scheme is ripe for reform.
The article is presented in four parts. Part I outlines the history of hydropower regulation in America, including the environmental, geographic, and human effects of big dam hydropower development that ultimately engendered the onerous regulations currently governing all hydropower development, including small hydro. Building off this history, Part II discusses America’s hydropower potential, the available methods for tapping it, and the possible environmental impacts of these methods. Part III provides an overview of the current regulations governing small hydropower. The article concludes in Part IV by proposing areas where the regulatory framework for low-impact small hydropower should be reformed to properly and responsibly encourage its development, including (1) making a regulatory distinction between low-impact and more physically-intrusive methods of hydropower generation; and (2) streamlining and expediting the approval process for low impact small hydropower projects
