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Phoenix666 [soylentnews.org] writes:

The All Energy Forum [forbes.com] at last week’s ANS Meeting in Washington D.C. [ans.org] was an eye-opener for many reasons, not the least being my underestimation of the amount of new hydroelectric power that could be installed in America without building a single new dam [energy.gov].

Almost 90% of America’s low-carbon energy sources come from hydropower [unlockhydro.org] (21%) and nuclear power (67%), which together avoid almost a billion tons of CO2 emissions each year. If we are to achieve any of the low-carbon goals we have set out for 2030 and beyond, hydropower must increase significantly and nuclear has to maintain it’s share of power, and even increase slightly by 2030.

David Zayas, Senior Manager at the National Hydropower Association (NHA), says that the goal is to double hydropower [unlockhydro.org] over the next few decades, adding 60 GW by 2030, producing an additional 300 billion kWhs of electricity each year.

The premise is that most dams in America don't produce power, and that adding that capability would account for the increase.

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