West Coast Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Licensed Hydroelectric Projects
Hydropower Projects on the West Coast
The Federal Power Act (FPA) requires hydropower project owners to obtain a license from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The FPA authorizes NOAA Fisheries to issue mandatory improvements for fish passage (pursuant to FPA section 18) and to recommend other measures (pursuant to FPA sections 10(a) and 10(j)) to protect anadromous salmon, steelhead, and sturgeon and to improve their habitats. Some of these fish are listed as threatened or endangered and have critical habitat designated under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
NOAA Fisheries biologists and engineers participate in FERC re-licensing projects on the West Coast, many of which negatively affect aquatic habitat and lack adequate facilities for safe fish passage. NOAA Fisheries staff set standards for upstream and downstream fish passage as well as recommend improvements to water quality, spawning gravel, and other important aspects of salmonid habitat. We work collaboratively with project owners to design solutions based on the unique conditions of each river, including state of the art fish passage facilities that help fish pass dams in a manner that is more aligned with their natural behavior.
Projects
Puget Sound
- Admiralty Inlet
- Baker River
- Cushman
- Jackson
- Morse Creek
- Newhalem Creek
- Nisqually
- Skagit River
- Snoqualmie Falls
- South Fork Tolt River
- White River
- Wynoochee
- Yelm
- Youngs Creek
Snake River Basin
Mid-Columbia Public Utility Districts
Other Columbia River Basin
- Condit
- Cowlitz Falls
- Cowlitz River
- Enloe
- Lake Chelan
- Lewis River
- Marmot
- Opal Springs
- Packwood Lake
- Pelton Round Butte
- Powerdale
Willamette River Basin
- Albany
- Carmen-Smith
- Clackamas
- Dorena Lake
- Leaburg-Walterville
- Thompson's Mill
- Willamette Falls
- Willamette River
Rogue & Umpqua Rivers
Klamath River
Eel River
Sacramento River
- Battle Creek P-1121
- DeSabla-Centerville P-803
- Kilarc-Cow P-606
- Lassen Lodge P-12496
- McCloud-Pit P-2106
Yuba River
- Yuba River Development P-2246
- Narrows P-1403
- Yuba-Bear P-2266
- Deer Creek P-14530
- Upper Drum Spaulding P-2310
- Lower Drum Spaulding P-14531
Feather River
- Oroville Development P-2100
- Poe P-2107
- Rock Creek-Cresta P-1962
- Upper N. Folk Feather P-2105
- South Feather P-2088
- Camp Far West P-2997
Merced River
Tuolumne River
Santa Clara River / Piru Creek
Marine Hydrokinetic (MHK) Energy
- Coos Bay OPT Wave Park Project
- Douglas County Wave & Tidal Energy Project
- PacWave at Oregon State University
- Reedsport OPT Wave Park Project
- Reedsport OPT Wave Park Expansion Project