Washington’s Electric Grid Tradeoffs: More Spill, Less Hydropower

by Emily | May 13, 2026 | Clean Energy News, Hydropower

Oregon’s Bonneville Dam is the last of 14 dams on the Columbia River before it empties into the Pacific Ocean. (Courtesy of the Bonneville Power Administration) In litigation over Columbia Basin salmon, federal agencies began spilling more water last month to comply...

Department of Energy to Resume Negotiations for $430 Million in Hydropower Funding

by Emily | Apr 28, 2026 | Clean Energy News, Hydropower

Grand Coulee Dam, Washington. Courtesy of Bureau of Reclamation. The Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Hydropower and Hydrokinetic Office (H2O) announced earlier this week that it will soon resume negotiations to issue nearly $430 million in payments to American...

U.S. House Committee Advances ‘Build More Hydro’ Bill

by Emily | Jan 29, 2026 | Clean Energy News, Hydropower, Policy & Legislation

National Hydropower Association photo Last week, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce unanimously approved the ‘Build More Hydro’ Bill (H.R. 2072), sending the legislation to the full House for consideration. The bill is intended to prevent project...

Hydropower Market Game Released, National Labs Request Feedback

by Emily | Sep 25, 2025 | Clean Energy News, Education, Hydropower

The Main Menu screen of the Hydropower Market Game, Argonne National Laboratory. Argonne National Laboratory, in collaboration with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), recently launched a beta version of their Hydropower Market Game, an interactive...

Environmental Groups Sue BPA For Joining SPP’s Power Market

by Emily | Jul 17, 2025 | Clean Energy News, Hydropower

Ice Harbor Dam, Bonneville Power Administration Late last week, five advocacy groups filed a lawsuit in federal court over Bonneville Power Administration’s recent decision to join Southwest Power Pool’s (SPP) Markets+ (a power market operator). Plaintiffs say the...

2023 Columbia Basin/Lower Snake River Dams Settlement Agreement Withdrawn

by Emily | Jun 17, 2025 | Clean Energy News, Hydropower

Ice Harbor Dam, Bonneville Power Administration Last week, the Trump administration announced that it would withdraw from the 2023 Federal Columbia River Power System settlement, known as the “12/14 Agreement.” The agreement was reached by the Biden Administration and...