NEWS: Hydropower plants are drowning in red tape—this bill could offer a lifeline.

The state of affairs: The country’s hydro fleet is “quietly getting buried by its own permitting process,” a new National Hydropower Association analysis notes. Today, hydro facilities run into roughly 10x more operating requirements than those listed in their original licenses.

The result: More plants are shuttering to avoid a complex and costly process—depriving the grid of sorely needed electrons. 

A solution? Last week, the Senate passed a bill to streamline and offer more transparency around hydro relicensing. It’s great timing: Nearly 350 permits (accounting for 12 GW of power) will be up for relicensing within the next decade.