National Hydropower Association

Our Natel contingent—Bill Malus, Gia Schneider, Abe Schneider, Kate Stirr, Pat Donahue, Sterling Watson, Jessica Penrod, Will Shields, Betsy Pfeiffer, Miles Hall—had a wonderful time at Clean Currents this year! Two big highlights were Gia's conversation with Malcolm Woolf about embracing innovation in hydropower and Sterling's selection as a Rising Star by the Future Leaders of Waterpower, both part of the opening plenary. Also on Wednesday, Abe spoke to a packed room about modernizing existing hydropower sites with turbines designed for fish safety, as part of a panel on Rehabilitation and Modernization moderated by Cameron M. of Xcel Energy. The next day, Sterling had the opportunity to present about using hydroelectric turbines as downstream fish passageways as part of a rockstar panel of women discussing Tools for Optimizing Environmental Outcomes. The panel was moderated by Kelly Catlett of American Rivers and also included presentations by Ann Willis of American Rivers, Brenda M. Pracheil of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, and Katie Kennedy of The Nature Conservancy. On Thursday, Gia joined the International Hydropower Association (IHA)'s Debbie Gray to present about the IHA's World Hydropower Outlook, specifically the North and Central American sector. Outside of the presentation rooms, we enjoyed participating in the Natel-led FishSafe runners 5k and in the morning yoga organized by the National Hydropower Association, not to mention all of the happy hours... 😉 Thank you so much to Malcolm Woolf, Marla Barnes, Joseph LoSasso, Francesca Blanco Hadjimichael, CMP, Ellie Rubalow, and everyone else at NHA who helped to make Clean Currents such a valuable and enjoyable experience! And thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth to discuss FishSafe turbines, embracing innovation, and making hydropower more sustainable for future generations! Please reach out to continue the conversation at any time: info@natelenergy.com. #CleanCurrents #hydropower #withhydropower #waterpower #fishsafe #fishpassage #sustainability #renewables #greenpower #portland

We hope you'll attend today's members-only webinar on water power and clean energy priorities in 2025 under a new president and a new congress. POLITICO's Josh Siegel and E&E News' Nico Portuondo will be our special guests to help us make some sense of the current election uncertainty. That's happening today at 1:00pm EST via Microsoft Teams. See you there!

Sending a final round of applause for our incredible Clean Currents 2024 Sponsors! Your contributions made a significant impact on the meeting's success! Looking forward to seeing you at Clean Currents 2025. #CC24 #HerefortheHydro #CleanCurrents2024

As states make plans to improve or replace key infrastructure, thinking towards the future is critical. The City of Beaverton, Oregon, which conducted a conduit hydropower pilot back in 2020, deepened their commitment to a more sustainable future by adding a hydropower turbine to the Sexton Mountain Pump Station. The pump station, which is a critical part of the city's water system, will now feature an in-conduit turbine capable of generating 426 megawatt-hours of carbon-free electricity, offsetting 27% of the pump station's energy load and saving the city thousands of dollars a year for the next 50 to 100 years! NHA and NARUC worked on a POWERHOUSE article about the topic, which includes photos from Beaverton's 2020 pilot; read it here: https://bit.ly/47BoUMJ Check out the latest update here: https://bit.ly/3zXdAzi

Gratitude. Pride. Exhaustion. These are a few of the emotions I feel as I travel home from #cleancurrents 2024. Gratitude that I have the honor to work with such an amazing team and Board, and support an industry that plays a critical - yet under-appreciated - role in addressing climate change and keeping the lights on. Pride that in just a few short years, Clean Currents has become the authentic place where the hydropower community gathers each year. And exhaustion because, well, even this extrovert can handle only so many stimulating discussions, creative problem solving, and pickle ball. I’m heading home to sleep. Looking forward to seeing everyone again soon!

Today is the final day of NHA's Clean Currents in Portland, Oregon, and the morning's plenary was the culmination of multiple NHA award programs, including: the Outstanding Stewards of America's Waters (OSAW) Award, the Henwood Award, and the Past Chair's Legacy Scholarship. The OSAW Award is an annual recognition of deserving organizations in the water power industry for projects that exhibit exemplary operational, historical, and recreational enhancement. The 2024 OSAW Award winners are as follows: - Foundation for Water and Energy Education / Category: Public Education / Program Name: Hydropower and Career STEM Academy - Pacific Gas and Electric Company / Category: Recreational, Environmental, and Historical Enhancement / Program Name: Land Conservation Commitment - Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Benton Conservation District / Category: Public Education / Program Name: Salmon Summit - Kleinschmidt Associates / Category: Recreational, Environmental, and Historical Enhancement / Program Name: Shikellamy Nature-Like Fishway Design & Construction Watch the 2024 OSAW video here: https://bit.ly/3zTDm7v The Henwood Award was created in 1990 to honor the life and work of Dr. Kenneth Henwood, who was a passionate hydropower advocate. This year's Henwood Award, which is considered one of the highest honors in hydropower, was presented to John Ragonese - a career water power professional with over 40+ years at Great River Hydro, LLC. Read the full press release here: https://bit.ly/4dDbO48 Finally, the Past Chairs Legacy Scholarship, which was created in 2008, helps encourage students to become part of the water power industry by funding expenses for a scholar pursuing relevant studies. The 2024 award winner was Kiersten Wilson, a rising sophomore pursuing a degree in Environmental Engineering from Colorado School of Mines. Congratulations to all!

In order for hydropower to meet the challenges of the energy transition, climate change, and 24/7 reliability, it's imperative that we grow and strengthen Pumped Storage Hydropower (PSH). To further support the push for greater adaption of pumped storage technology, NHA has partnered with Kleinschmidt Associates to develop a new report that outlines the current state of this vital technology while providing policy recommendations to protect PSH. The three most urgent recommendations coming out of the report, and the subsequent session at NHA's Clean Currents, are as follows: - Advocating for an investment tax credit that helps put PSH at parity with other energy storage technologies - Fully valuing all grid services, including those provided by PSH, that may not be fully compensated - Reforming permitting policy to expedite PSH development Take action to advance these recommendations by contacting your Member of Congress, and check out this informative and interactive report: https://bit.ly/4dKoxSB

TODAY: The Grid Deployment Office announced a $12 million investment to help ensure hydropower facilities across the country continue to provide clean, affordable electricity. Thirty-nine facilities in 16 states will receive incentive payments for electricity generated and sold in calendar year 2023 as part of GDO’s Hydroelectric Production Incentive Program. Read the full announcement: https://lnkd.in/ePtHGysr #HydroPower #Hydro

U.S. Senator Ron Wyden couldn’t have said it better at today’s #cleancurrents Plenary session: “Hydropower - which is almost in the DNA of those of us in the Pacific Northwest - is going to be front and center in building on what we have already accomplished.”

If you've seen people walking around Clean Currents with buttons that read "HSP Pioneer," and you're wondering what it means, we are here to help! The Hydropower Systems Principles Course, or HSP, was created by NHA with the help of 50+ water power industry experts to provide new employees, and those joining from other areas of the electric power sector, the tools and knowledge necessary to thrive! Yesterday's HSP course had over 100 attendees, and it featured sections on everything from the history of hydropower to the engineering of projects! Learn more about the course here: https://lnkd.in/ePsG-UEk