The Nature Conservancy has reached a deal to buy four hydropower dams on the Kennebec River with the intent to remove the structures and restore the waterway for native sea run fish.
Under the historic agreement, dam owner Brookfield Renewable will continue to operate the Lockwood, Hydro-Kennebec, Shawmut, and Weston dams while the Conservancy undergoes a long-term process to decommission the structures.
Conservancy Associate State Director Alex Mas said the purchase could pave the way to open more than 800 miles of rivers and streams to ocean.
"There aren't very many places in the country that have this kind of potential to fully reconnect a river from some of the best spawning and rearing habitat all the way out to a really productive ocean in the Gulf of Maine," Mas said in an interview.
The latest agreement is the continuation of a process started more than two decades ago when the Edwards Dam was removed further down on the river, allowing a remarkable restoration of migratory fish runs.
"We're excited to work with others to restore the system in a way that restores the ecological health and restores the region's economic resiliency," Mas. said.
It could take up to a decade to complete decommissioning, remove the structures and retore the river to its natural flow, according to the Conservancy.
Dams have all but blocked sea run fish including Atlantic Salmon from rich spawning grounds on the Sandy River for more than a century.
The Conservancy is forming a new organization called the Kennebec River Restoration Trust that will take over ownership and operations of the dams and pursue restoration of the Kennebec.
Mas said it will cost $168 million for the dam acquisition, including purchasing the facilities, transaction costs and a capital reserve for the new restoration trust. The organization has secured all but $30 million of that total, he added.
The group needs an additional $140 million to operate and remove the dams, according to the Conservancy.
News of the deal was applauded by environmental and conservation groups that have long pushed to restore the Kennebec.
John Burrows, vice president of operations for the Atlantic Salmon Federation said that damming the river had environmental impacts beyond blocking fish runs. He said it changed the way that sediment was carried downstream and impacted birds and wildlife that dependent on its natural flow.
"Once dams were constructed and the river became a series of really slow moving deep impoundments, it really just changed everything about the ecosystem," Burrows said in an interview.
In a press release The Nature Conservancy said it intends to work closely with communities and businesses to manage the project's impact and "leverage the economic, cultural, and health benefits it will bring to communities."
The organization particularly highlighted the potential consequences on the Sappi Somerset paper mill in Skowhegan, a major employer and economic engine in the region.
The mill relies on an impoundment at the Shawmut Dam for its industrial water intake and discharge.
Sean Wallace, Sappi North America's vice president of research, development and sustainability, said in an interview that without the dam the water level in the river will be too low for the mill's equipment.
"If the dam were to be removed, we would be unable to operate and be forced to shut down," Wallace said.
"Now having said that we think there are some other alternatives that are feasible," he added, such as installing fish passage over the dam.
The Nature Conservancy, in its press release, said that it is "100% committed" to developing a solution with Sappi to address the mill's long-term water needs.
"We believe it will be possible to protect the mill’s future and achieve river restoration goals on the lower Kennebec," the organization said.
