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St. Lawrence-
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Power Project
The Power Authority's history began with
hydropower, and our first generating facility is the St.
Lawrence-Franklin D. Roosevelt Power Project, located on New York's
border with Canada. We began producing hydroelectricity here in
1958, the result of a cooperative effort between the U.S. and
Canada. Adjacent to our project is Ontario Power Generation's Robert
H. Saunders Generating Station, which shares with us a power dam
that stretches across the St. Lawrence River the length of 10
football fields.
![Photo of dam at night](projectimages/StLawrence/stlaw2.jpg)
The Robert Moses-Robert H. Saunders Power Dam has
32 turbine-generators, divided equally by the international border
and operated independently by each utility. The Power Authority's 16
generating units can produce more than 900,000 kilowatts of
electricity, more than enough to light a city the size of
Washington, D.C., which has a population of 607,000!
In 1997, the Power Authority began a $281-million
Life Extension and Modernization program at its St. Lawrence-FDR
project. Besides replacing all 16 turbines, workers are
rebuilding or renovating the rest of the power dam’s generating
equipment, with a scheduled completion date of 2013.
Here's how it works:
The St. Lawrence River carries the outflow of all five of the Great
Lakes, the world's largest source of fresh water, to the Atlantic
Ocean. Along the way, river water pours into the power dam's intakes
and falls about 80 feet into the spiral-shaped scroll case
encircling each turbine. As this rushing water turns a turbine, an
attached rotor spins inside a stator, a ring of tightly bound copper
wires in a generator, creating an electric current.
Hydroelectricity is safe, clean, reliable and
inexpensive. The economic benefits of St. Lawrence-FDR are
far-reaching. More than half of the project's output supplies local
industries that employ several thousand of New York's North Country
residents.
Our entire power project stretches over the St.
Lawrence River Valley for 37 miles, within the Towns of Waddington, Louisville and Massena.
Besides the main power plant, it includes two control structures
upstream: the Iroquois and Long Sault dams. And we've built
thousands of acres of parkland along the river for recreational
enjoyment and wildlife preservation. In 2005, we opened a new power
project visitors center at nearby
Hawkins Point, where interactive exhibits and panoramic views show
how St. Lawrence-FDR converts rushing water into clean, reliable
hydroelectricity.
The 50-year federal license that allowed the Power
Authority to build and operate the St. Lawrence-FDR project expired
in 2003. A relicensing process,
aimed at securing federal and state approvals to continue project
operation, was completed, and a new
license
was issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on October
23, 2003.
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News:
October 16, 2008 -
Dock and Buoy Removal Scheduled to Begin Oct. 20
June 24, 2008 - N.Y. Power Authority
and Ontario Power Generation Mark 50 Years of Power Production at St.
Lawrence Project
June 18, 2008 - Free Ice Cream and Fireworks
to Highlight Community Celebration for 50th Anniversary of NYPA's St.
Lawrence Project
June 17, 2008 - NYPA Planning June 24
Festivities to Mark 50 Years of Power Production at St. Lawrence-FDR
Project
March 26, 2008 - NYPA Trustees
Approve Program For Funding Municipal Projects From Sale of Surplus St.
Lawrence-FDR Properties
March 20, 2008 - Grants
Approved From NYPA Fund for Environmental Education and Research
Projects Involving St. Lawrence River Watershed
February 13, 2008 - Agreements Reached
with Northern New York Communities for Operation and Maintenance of
Municipal Recreational Facilities Near St. Lawrence-FDR Project
February 8, 2008 - NYPA
President Kelley Hails Agreement with Alcoa
January 29, 2008 - NYPA
Trustees Approve Agreement in Principle With Alcoa Toward Hydropower
Contract and Preservation of Jobs and Capital Investment in North
Country
December 21,
2007
- Governor Spitzer Announces Hydropower Deal Between State and Alcoa,
Inc. (Governor's press release) (NYPA
President and CEO Roger B. Kelley's remarks)
December 5, 2007 - NYPA
Continues Progress in Transferring Ownership of Surplus St. Lawrence-FDR
Project Lands
November 27, 2007 - Power Authority to Make
Annual Payment of $2 Million to Local Entities
November 19, 2007 - Successful Start to
Second Half of Life Extension and Modernization Initiative at St.
Lawrence-FDR Project
Learn more about the St. Lawrence River
Research and Education Fund
September 20, 2007 - Funds Introduced to Keep
St. Lawrence River Knowledge Flowing
August 30, 2007 - NYPA and DEC Provide
Expanded Opportunities to Hunt Wilson Hill Wildlife Management Area:
Area to be Open for Hunting Access All Weekends During Waterfowl Seasons
(DEC and NYPA press release)
April 24. 2007 -Town of Massena Electric
Department to Receive Additional Low-Cost Power for New Wood Pellet
Manufacturing Facility and 23 New Jobs
April 18, 2007 - Wilson Hill Boat Launch to Reopen May 18
April 11, 2007 - NYPA Transfers Significant
Amount of Acreage to Waddington as Part of Relicensing Settlement
Highlights:
Learn more about the International Lake
Ontario - St. Lawrence River Study and
public meetings
that have been held in the North Country this summer and fall.
Read River News, our
community newsletter covering NYPA activities in the region near our
plant.
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