Volume 2 Issue 6 June 2021
June 7, 2021By Kris Polly One stereotype about hydropower holds that it deals with nothing more than massive, river-spanning dams with detrimental environmental effects. While large dams are certainly important (e.g., they protect downstream populations from floods), hydropower in the 21st century is making advances in efficiency and environmental friendliness in many fields. Our cover story with Juliann Blanford, the general manager of modular small hydro manufacturer NuSTREEM, highlights one of those advances. NuSTREEM’s new NuTECH controller uses new-to-industry control algorithms to improve the performance and efficiency of existing turbines. Hydro is also important for the integration of intermittent renewable energy resources,…
Colorado State Representative Hugh McKean on Passing Legislation to Designate Pumped Hydropower as Renewable
As of April 2021, energy generated by pumped hydroelectric facilities in Colorado counts as renewable under state energy standards. Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat, made the change official when he signed into law a bill sponsored by…
The Uncommon Dialogue Coalition’s Hydro Infrastructure Investment Proposal
The National Hydropower Association (NHA) is one of a dozen hydropower industry, environmental, and scientific groups that have come together in the Uncommon Dialogue process, a Stanford University initiative to create consensus around hydropower and environmental issues.…
Justin Wright-Eakes: Funding Innovation in the Water Industry at Oval Park Capital
History is full of stories of innovators with groundbreaking or brilliant ideas, but in need of an initial investment to get their ideas off the ground. That is where venture capital firms like Oval Park Capital come…
Niagara Parks Power Station: From Historic Plant to Tourist Attraction
Hydropower was one of the forces that fueled the Industrial Revolution in the 19th and 20th centuries, and advancements made during that time still shape the world we live in today. It is therefore crucial to preserve…
Juliann Blanford of NuSTREEM: Increasing the Efficiency of Hydro’s Installed Baseload
NuSTREEM is a pioneering hydroelectric equipment manufacturer based in Mansfield, Connecticut. Its original founder recognized that future growth in the U.S. small hydropower sector would rely on modern, modular, and intelligent generation equipment and innovative deployment platforms.…
The Bright Future of Innovative Dam Construction: Pumped Storage, Twin Dams, Off-River Reservoirs, and More
Almost all countries have built dams across rivers, mainly for supplying hydropower or storing water. The reservoirs are filled by gravity. The average per capita world hydropower supply is about 500 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, making up…
Restoring Utah’s Historic Olmsted Power Plant
Over the last 7 years, the Central Utah Water Conservancy District (CUWCD) has replaced the historic Olmsted power plant and transformed the century-old original building into a heritage feature. The early-priority-date water right associated with the full…
Building a Hydropower Engineering Master’s Program at the University of Toronto
Hydropower engineering is a specialized and highly multidisciplinary field, but perhaps because of the long-established nature of hydropower as a technology, there are now few university programs dedicated specifically to it. Bryan Karney, a professor at the…
Restoring the Thermalito Pumping- Generating Plant After a Catastrophic Fire
California’s Department of Water Resources (DWR) is charged with overseeing the State Water Project (SWP) through the constructing, operating, maintaining, and ensuring the safety and efficiency of the SWP’s dams and hydropower infrastructure. The SWP provides water…
Chuck Sensiba on Troutman Pepper’s Expertise in Hydro Law
The law firm Troutman Pepper has the largest hydropower practice in the country in terms of professionals who devote all or a substantial part of their law practice to hydropower matters. Dating to its earliest beginnings over…
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