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Union River, Ellsworth, ME

For the last several years the Downeast Salmon Federation has had the unfortunate opportunity to bear witness to young of the year river herring and adult American eels that are killed by the operation of the Leonard Lake hydropower dam on the Union River in downtown Ellsworth. This monitoring pushed Brookfield—the dam’s operators—to study downstream eel passage survival. The study yielded some discouraging numbers, showing that several of the dam’s turbines are highly efficient at killing adult eels. The results of the study did, however, push Brookfield to adopt a new operating plan that attempts to minimize the chances of killing eels during the peak of their migration. This is the first step in the right direction, but this year showed that it is not enough.

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Findings

For the last several years the Downeast Salmon Federation has had the unfortunate opportunity to bear witness to young of the year river herring and adult American eels that are killed by the operation of the Leonard Lake hydropower dam on the Union River in downtown Ellsworth. This monitoring pushed Brookfield—the dam’s operators—to study downstream eel passage survival. The study yielded some discouraging numbers, showing that several of the dam’s turbines are highly efficient at killing adult eels. The results of the study did, however, push Brookfield to adopt a new operating plan that attempts to minimize the chances of killing eels during the peak of their migration. This is the first step in the right direction, but this year showed that it is not enough.

Vision

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