Uncommon Dialogue | Hydropower, River Restoration, and Public Safety
Resources
Legislation
The Uncommon Dialogue helped develop and advocate for provisions in the following bills that advanced the three Rs – retrofit, rehabilitate, and removal of our nation’s dams.
H.R. 4375 - Twenty-First Century Dams Act
Introduced in the House on July 9, 2021, by Rep. Annie Kuster and referred on August 11, 2021. A companion bill, S. 2356, was introduced in the Senate on July 15, 2021 by Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Referred to multiple committees in both chambers in 2021 but did not become law during the 117th Congress.
The legislation proposes approximately $25.8 billion in federal investment over five years to:
- Enhance dam safety and inspection capacity
- Improve grid resilience and hydropower efficiency
- Fund removal of obsolete dams to restore riverine ecosystems and public safety
H.R.3684 - Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act
Also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, enacted November 15, 2021.
This wide ranging legislation contained many provisions that advanced the Uncommon Dialogue’s objectives, including support for state and local dam safety oversight, encouraging modernization of existing hydroelectric infrastructure with financial incentives, and advances in pumped-storage technology by funding early-stage planning efforts.
- Dam Safety: $800 million toward state dam safety programs, rehabilitation grants, and flood hazard management, including technical, planning, and removal efforts.
- FEMA National Dam Safety Program (NDSP): $658 million for state assistance grants (including $75 million for dam removal under the High Hazard Potential Dam Rehabilitation grant program); and $67 million for NDSP operations and support to help states with regulation, inspections, and technical assistance.
- USACE–EPA WIFIA Program: $75 million for dam safety projects via low-interest financing under the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act.
- Rehabilitation & Removal: $800 million for dam removal and safety upgrades, including environmental and grid-related improvements.
- Hydropower Modernization & Incentives: $753.6 million in grants to modernize existing hydroelectric facilities, improve efficiency, grid resilience, and address environmental concerns.
- Hydroelectric Production Incentives: $125 million to expand generation capacity (e.g., adding turbines to existing dams).
- Efficiency Improvement Incentives: $75 million for retrofits or upgrades boosting efficiency by at least 3%.
- Maintaining & Enhancing Hydroelectricity Incentives: $553.6 million for capital improvements related to dam safety, grid resilience, and environmental enhancements.
- Pumped Storage Hydropower Initiative: $10 million for pilot planning and permitting large (≥1,000 MW) pumped storage hydropower projects that integrate renewable energy and serve multiple electricity markets (including tribal land projects).
S.2306 - Maintaining and Enhancing Hydroelectricity and River Restoration Act of 2021
Introduced June 24, 2021, by Senators Maria Cantwell (D‑WA) and Lisa Murkowski (R‑AK), and referred to the Senate Finance Committee. H.R. 4499 in the House is identical and addresses the same provisions. The bill has not been enacted into law and remains pending.
This bill proposed a federal tax credit to incentivize improvements at existing hydroelectric dams and the voluntary removal of obsolete dam infrastructure to support clean energy, public safety, and river ecosystem health
Hearings
- Testimony by Malcolm Woolfe, President and CEO, National Hydropower Association
- Testimony by Tom Kiernan, CEO, American Rivers
- Testimony by Mary Pavel, Partner, Sonosky, Chambers, Sachse, Endreson & Perry LLC
Senate Committee on Natural Resources - Full Committee Hydropower Hearing (January 11, 2022)
- Testimony by Malcolm Woolfe, President and CEO National Hydropower Association
- Written Comments by American Rivers and the Hydropower Reform Coalition
Letters
Joint response from eight Uncommon Dialogue participant organizations from the industry, dam safety, and ENGO caucuses to Department of Energy Request for Information DE-FOA-0002762, which sought input on the implementation of the $630 million in DOE hydroelectric incentive programs (Sections 243 and 247) funded under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021.
Letter from hydropower industry members in support of the Licensing Reform Package (July 2022)
Letter from 35 hydropower companies and organizations to Congressional leaders in support of the Uncommon Dialogue proposed Federal Power Act revisions on dam licensing, relicensing and license surrender.
Letter from Norman Bay, Neil Chatterjee, Tony Clark and Philip D. Moeller to Congressional leaders in support of the Uncommon Dialogue proposed Federal Power Act revisions on dam licensing, relicensing and license surrender.
Appropriations Committees Letter (June 2022)
Letter to the House and Senate appropriations committees from dam safety officials, civil engineers, river conservation organizations, and the hydropower industry regarding funding for dam rehabilitation, retrofitting, and removal in the 2023 fiscal year.
Agency Letters (December 2021 and January 2022)
Letters to federal agency leaders from dam safety groups, river conservation organizations, and hydropower industry about implementation of 21st Century Dams Act provisions included in the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Congressional Letter (March 2021)
In a letter to President Biden, 40 members of Congress cited Stanford’s process to reach a joint statement between environmental and hydropower groups in requesting the inclusion of funding to retrofit, rehabilitate and remove dams in the proposed infrastructure package.
Stakeholder Letters (October 2020)
Parties to the Joint Statement of Collaboration wrote leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate and administration officials of relevant federal agencies .
Workshops
Uncommon Dialogue Innovations for Sustainability-Water Quality Workshop (February 1, 2024)
The Innovations for Sustainability-Water Quality Workshop was produced by the Uncommon Dialogue’s Working Group 1 (Technology) and Working Group 4 (Valuation). This workshop highlighted the development and deployment of several innovative technologies that help improve water quality at hydropower projects. The workshop also included a robust discussion on obstacles/barriers, as well as opportunities for advancing these technologies.
Uncommon Dialogue Innovations for Dam Safety Workshop (April 26, 2024)
The Innovations for Dam Safety Workshop was produced by the Uncommon Dialogue’s Working Group 1 (Technology) and Working Group 2 (Dam Safety). This workshop highlighted the role of innovation in dam safety for hydropower operations, public safety, and environmental sustainability. The workshop focused on innovations and technologies related to collaborative technical assistance, modernizing dam assessments, and using artificial intelligence to improve hydropower and dam safety operations.