When Portland General Electric proposed to decommission a ninety-year-old hydropower project in a scenic area close to Portland, few models existed for how to do it in an environmentally sensitive and cost-effective way. Environmental issues included protecting endangered salmon and preventing damage from the release of sediments accumulated behind the dams. Portland General Electric took the initiative to form a Decommissioning Working Group mediated by RESOLVE, composed of representatives of government agencies, businesses, and public interest groups to jointly examine the complex policy, science, and engineering issues and develop a plan for the decommissioning.
The Working Group negotiated a consensus agreement for a comprehensive approach to the decommissioning that included removal of two dams and project operations, donation of project lands, measures to protect salmon and restore habitat, transfer of water rights, and a commitment to conduct ongoing monitoring and take action based on the results. The donated lands form the heart of a scenic, five-thousand-acre conservation and public recreation area, while the water rights transfer ensured that four miles of the Little Sandy River saw water for the first time since 1912.
Excerpt from case summary
Paul De Morgan
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