PNNL

Hydropower is a key source of renewable energy, but only about 3 percent of dams in the United States generate electricity—the rest are non-powered dams (NPDs). While some NPDs are suitable for conversion to power-generating facilities, few have been retrofitted in the last 20 years due to the complexity and concerns about the long-term return on investment. To help overcome some of these barriers, researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory developed an approach to calculate the economic value of a converted NPD, including non-traditional value streams that aren’t usually captured in economic valuations.

The potential benefits of an NPD conversion reach far beyond direct impacts to the power grid—they also include non-market effects such as improved recreation opportunities or enabling the growth of nearby energy-intensive industries. Estimating the full magnitude of potential benefits from NPD conversion means putting a monetary value on direct and indirect benefits alike, even if they are not remunerated to the project owner. Doing so will equip stakeholders and developers with as much information as possible when considering NPD retrofits, which could play a role in planning decisions and hopefully move beneficial projects forward.

To put values on non-market items and impacts, the research team developed a catalog of value streams associated with powering an NPD and a companion report that details how to quantify non-traditional value streams at individual sites. The report includes a detailed case study demonstrating the approach at the Allegheny River Lock and Dam 2 in Pennsylvania, which currently has a proposed retrofit in the permitting process.

Together, the catalog and report establish a consistent approach to catalog value streams, specify affected community members, identify potential impacts, explore how different technologies and configurations might affect value streams, and provide methods and metrics to quantify non-market value streams.