US House of Representatives passes hydropower bill

The US House of Representatives has unanimously voted in favour of the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act of 2013, also termed as the House Resolution 267.

The legislation will not only promote the growth of mini hydro and in-conduit projects, but will also reduce the regulatory timeframe for low-impact projects.

Under the Hydropower Regulatory Act, exemptions for small hydro have increased from 5MW to 10MW; conduit projects below 5MW capacity have been removed from Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) jurisdiction; and the conduit exemption has been increased to 40MW for all projects.

The legislation also allows FERC to extend preliminary permits, while also requiring it to examine a two-year licensing process for closed-loop pumped-storage and non-powered dams.

National Hydropower Association (NHA) executive director Linda Ciocci was quoted by Hydroworld.com as saying that NHA supports the passage of the Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act.

"The unanimous vote demonstrates that policymakers view hydropower as a solution to the nation’s energy challenges and believe we should expand its contributions to America’s energy mix," Ciocci said.

As per the NHA statistics, hydroelectric energy accounts for nearly two-thirds of the country’s renewable energy generation with 100,000MW of installed capacity.

Studies point out that with appropriate policies, there is scope for an additional 60,000MW of capacity from hydro.

The 112th Congress gave its unanimous approval to the bill in July 2012; however, it did not come for a Senate vote in the last session.

The bipartisan energy bill was again introduced to 113th Congress in January by Representatives Diana DeGette and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, following which it passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

US Representative Rodgers said, "The future of American energy independence depends on the development of an ‘all-of-the-above’ energy approach, and I’m proud that hydro is finally on its way to being part of it."

The legislation now awaits the approval of the Senate and the President.