Native American tribes gain new authority to stop unwanted hydropower projects
The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has rejected several proposed hydropower projects on the largest Native American reservation in the U.S. The commission has also created a policy that essentially gives tribes early veto power over such projects.
Crews to lower spillway connected to failed Michigan dam
In this Wednesday, May 20, 2020, photo, people survey the flood damage to the Curtis Road Bridge in Edenville, Mich., over the Tittabawassee River. (Neil Blake/The Grand Rapids Press via AP)EDENVILLE, Mich. โ Crews will begin lowering a spillway connected to a dam that failed last year and contributed to massive flooding in parts of mid-Michigan. The Edenville Dam Tobacco River spillway will be lowered by more than 20 feet (6 meters) starting Feb. 24 to help prevent future flooding, according to Michiganโs Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy. More than 11,000 people in the Midland area had to be evacuated last May after heavy rains stressed the Edenville Dam, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) north of Detroit, and the Sanford Dam, about 7 miles (11 kilometers) downriver. The nearly century-old Edenville Dam had been the target of lengthy investigations by federal regulators.
Biden names Democrats to lead nuclear, pipeline agencies
(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)WASHINGTON โ Moving quickly to assert influence over energy issues, President Joe Biden has named two Democrats to lead regulatory agencies that oversee nuclear power, natural gas and other energy infrastructure. Christopher Hanson, the new chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Rich Glick, leader of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, replace Republicans who led the panels under President Donald Trump. The NRC regulates commercial nuclear power plants and other uses of nuclear materials, including in medicine, while FERC regulates interstate transmission of electricity, natural gas and oil. It also reviews proposals to build liquefied natural gas terminals, interstate natural gas pipelines and hydropower projects. He also has served as a senior adviser in the Energy Departmentโs Office of Nuclear Energy and other department roles in the Obama administration.
Michigan dam had repeated safety violations before flooding
This photo shows a view of a dam on Wixom Lake in Edenville, Mich., Tuesday, May 19, 2020. The Edenville dam, in Michigans Gladwin and Midland counties, includes a series of earthen embankments totaling about 6,600 feet (2,012 meters) long, with a maximum height of nearly 55 feet (16.8 meters). The Edenville dam's spillway capacity was only about 50 percent of the probable maximum flood, the commission said. Among its other violations: performing unauthorized dam repairs and earth-moving and failing to file an adequate public safety plan, maintain recreation facilities or monitor water quality. The record demonstrates that there is no reason to believe that Boyce Hydro will come into compliance," the commission added.
Energy regulator warns of blackouts if gas pipeline were attacked
Neil Chatterjee, chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, warned that an attack on even a single US natural gas pipeline could cause mass blackouts. "Today, we have eight or nine generators depending on a single gas pipeline." TSA's pipeline security branch has just six full-time employeesThe Government Accountability Office has recently identified "weaknesses" in TSA's pipeline security program, including severe staffing limitations that prevented the agency from conducting security reviews. The GAO found that the pipeline security branch employed just six full-time employees last year. The GAO also found that the pipeline security branch has not updated its risk assessment on the top 100 critical pipeline systems since 2014.