December 20, 2008 - Kingsley Dam is Certified at the December LIHI Governing Board Meeting
Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District’s project is the first Nebraska Project to earn LIHI certification
PORTLAND, MAINE – (December 20, 2008) —The Low Impact Hydropower Institute (LIHI) announced that at their December 18th meeting the Governing Board voted unanimously to certify the Kingsley Dam Project (FERC No. 1417). The Kingsley Dam Project consists of dams, reservoirs, canals, and power plants located on the North Platte and Platte Rivers in Garden, Keith, Lincoln, Dawson, and Gosper Counties in south-central Nebraska.
The 3-mile long Kingsley Dam, on the North Platte River, impounds Lake McConaughy, which has a surface area of 30,500 acres and a maximum allowable storage capacity of 1,790,000 acre-feet. Kingsley Hydro, a 51.9-MW single-turbine hydroelectric plant, abuts Kingsley Dam and discharges to Lake Ogallala. The Central (or Tri-County) Diversion Dam, located 50 miles downstream of Kingsley Dam at the confluence of the North Platte and South Platte rivers, diverts Platte River flow into the 75-mile-long Supply Canal, which incorporates 27 dams and impoundments and three 18-MW hydroelectric power plants.
The Kingsley Dam Project meets LIHI’s eight environmentally rigorous Low Impact criteria addressing river flows, water quality, fish passage and protection, watershed health, endangered species protection, cultural resources, recreation use and access, and whether or not the dam itself has been recommended for removal. The Kingsley Dam Project successfully completed LIHI’s application process, which includes a public comment period, review by an independent technical consultant or LIHI staff, consultations with state and federal natural resource agencies, and evaluation by the LIHI Governing Board, including leaders in the river conservation and renewable energy fields. The Board’s vote to certify Kingsley Dam Project was unanimous.
The certification of the Kingsley Dam Project facility is valid for five years and will expire on May 22, 2013. During the time the Kingsley Dam Project is certified as low impact, CNPPID may market the Kingsley Dam Project facilities as a certified Low Impact Hydropower facility. Certification by the Institute also makes the power produced from the Kingsley Dam facility eligible for other “green” power programs.
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