Trust buys PPL dams for $24M
The Penobscot River Restoration Trust has closed its $24 million purchase of three dams in eastern Maine, with plans to reopen nearly 1,000 miles of fish habitat.
The trust, a coalition of state and national environmental and tribal organizations, on Friday bought the Veazie, Great Works and Howland dams from PPL Corp., according to a press release from the trust. It plans to dismantle the Great Works and Veazie dams and construct a bypass on the Howland dam, work that will cost an additional $25 million. The historic deal allows PPL to increase power generation at other dams on the river to offset the loss of the three dams. Work to remove the Great Works dam is expected to begin this summer.
The project is expected to benefit 11 fish species, including Atlantic salmon, sturgeon and river herring, as well as generate $5 million in jobs per dam, according to the release. State regulators signed off on the proposal in July, and the project also received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Army Corps of Engineers.
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