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Morrisville Water & Light plans to surrender FERC license for Green River hydro

Morrisville Water & Light plans to surrender FERC license for Green River hydro

Morrisville Water & Light (MWL) recently filed its intent to surrender the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) license to generate electricity at the 1.8 MW Green River hydro facility.

In November 2019, MWL filed an appeal related to a state water quality certification pursuant to the federal Clean Water Act issued by the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) for the operation of hydroelectric facilities, including Green River. ANR certified three facilities operated by MWL and imposed conditions, including those to control the minimum amount of water released from each dam to support habitat for fish.

The state of Vermont’s Water Quality Certificate conditions make the economics of the Green River hydro facility unfeasible for this small, not-for-profit utility, according to a release. Surrendering the license to generate electricity is the first formal step in MWL’s plans to move the Green River Reservoir’s dam operations to the state.

MWL serves about 4,000 residents and businesses in the Morrisville area with electric service. MWL is funded by the ratepayers of Morrisville and six surrounding rural communities.

“We recognize and greatly appreciate the value of the Green River hydro facility and the reservoir,” said Scott Johnstone, MWL general manager. “The hydro facility has reliably generated renewable energy for the region for several decades and the dam itself preserves the incredible reservoir, the state park and is invaluable for flood control. Unfortunately, due to the State’s Water Quality Conditions, we can no longer operate this hydro facility without incurring a significant financial loss – a loss that would end up on the backs of MWL ratepayers. We cannot ask the ratepayers of Morrisville and the surrounding communities to pay higher electric rates to preserve a reservoir and a state park – that is not the role of a municipal utility.”

On March 12, 2024, MWL filed notice with FERC that it plans to submit an application to “surrender the license for operating the Green River Development.” Under this application, MWL will propose to eliminate the hydro generation component of the dam but retain the dam and its ability to help manage future flooding events. MWL will maintain the reservoir levels and ensure proper loon nesting habitat through the transition. It is MWL’s intent that the state maintain the dam moving forward to retain the Green River Reservoir State Park as well as the dam’s invaluable role in flood control management.

“The Green River Reservoir dam creates the Green River Reservoir and the corresponding Green River Reservoir State Park. It is the appropriate role of the State of Vermont to manage this dam so Vermonters and visitors alike can enjoy this incredible resource and so that the dam can be appropriately managed for flood control.” said Tom Snipp, MWL Board Chair.