Maine dams face an uncertain future
Associated PressThe Ellsworth Dam, nestled just upstream from the picturesque Union River Bridge in downtown Ellsworth, is easy to miss, the extent of its towering facade hidden from passing motorists by foliage and a bend in the river. The dozens of active hydroelectric dams in the state have long-dominated Maine’s renewable energy portfolio, before benchmarks for renewable energy were even set. Wind energy surpassed hydroelectric power as Maine’s largest source of in-state renewable electricity for the first time in 2021 and, alongside solar, is poised for significant expansion under state law. Hydro remains linchpin of renewable energy Maine’s hydroelectric prominence comes from the more than 30,000 miles of rivers within state boundaries, where over 60 of those waterways bleed into the Atlantic. The loss of those dams’ renewable electricity contributions, which account for 0.43 percent of the state’s annual electricity generation, the administration argued, could instead be replaced by new clean energy developments, like grid-scale solar.
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