Community Benefits

Community Benefits

• Waterpower can be used to manage water flow to minimize the impacts of heavy snow melt, abnormally high precipitation or drought conditions.  This can prove to be beneficial to landowners as flooding can be minimized or water flows maintained during periods of drought.
• Waterpower facilities can also enhance recreational opportunities such as hunting and fishing as well as water activities like kayaking, canoeing and swimming. Some waterpower facilities attract tourism which, aside from recreational aspects, can provide a boost to local economies.
• Locally produced electricity can be attractive to business and industry which, in turn, brings jobs and economic prosperity.
• Local generation reduces the need for long transmission lines that can be costly, have environmental impacts and reduce efficiency as some power is lost during transmission.  Local generation can also improve reliability by providing supply during extreme weather events like ice storms or blackouts that affect the larger electrical grid system.