Navigating Decommissioning Decisions: From Evaluation to Execution

Includes a working lunch.
Includes contributions from faculty representing American Rivers, Kleinschmidt, and McMillen.


Workshop Description:
As hydropower infrastructure ages, dam decommissioning is becoming an increasingly important conversation for owners, regulators, and communities. This half-day workshop will offer practical guidance, whether you’re considering if decommissioning is the right path or actively navigating the process. Participants will explore evaluating costs, risks, regulatory pathways, construction methods, site restoration, cultural considerations, and funding strategies.

After a plenary session with expert insights, you’ll join small-group breakouts in different corners of the room to tackle real-world scenarios, share peer experiences, and problem-solve together, leaving with ideas you can adapt to your own projects. Through expert-led breakouts, participants will explore topics including:

Engineering & Site Restoration
• Dam Removal Methods: Full, Partial, or Leave-in-Place — Strategies and Case Studies
• Decommissioning Construction: Means, Methods, and Field Realities
• Construction and Restoration: How Long is the Road to Final Surrender?

Regulatory, Legal & Community Considerations
• The FERC Approval Path: Crafting a Clear Plan
• Liability & Risk: Managing Flooding, Sediment, and Property Impacts
• Tribal and Cultural Reconnection: Restoring Heritage and Waterways

Economic Decision-Making & Funding
• Cost-Benefit & Risk Analysis: Determining When It’s Time
• Buyers and Sellers: Learn more about transferring of a hydroelectric facility to those that may be able to continue operation instead of decommissioning.
• Funding Resources: Creative Strategies and Success Stories

Presenters

Diane Barr

Faculty

Principal Regulatory Specialist at Camas, LLC