FYI, on Monday night, November 18, 2024 I testified in Albany in front of the New York Power Authority on behalf of the Indian Lake Association, with the support of the ILA president, Glenn VanNostrand. Our goal was to make the NYPA aware of the ILA’s interest in promoting the goal of installing hydroelectric power in our soon-to-be newly restored Indian lake Dam in the central Adirondack Park. Here is the original text of the presentation:

The Town of Indian Lake has been trying for 37 years to act against climate change by trying to institute hydropower generation on the Indian Lake dam.  The most recent attempt, begun in 2006, went through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Preliminary Permit process.
Even though it had almost universal support, the project ultimately stalled because of the opposition of Adirondack conservation organizations who believed that the dam was a part of the Forest Preserve, so that  generating power would violate Article 14 of the State Constitution. However, members of the ILA located state government documents proving that the dam had never been in the modern definition of the Forest Preserve. Issues surrounding the dam were adjudicated in 1997 by the NYS Supreme Court issued a stipulation that the property on which the dam and dam keeper’s house are located is not part of the Forest Preserve.
    The Regulating District operates the dam, and many other impoundments under their control, for the purpose of reducing flood risk downstate (in Albany, among other locales).  They also manage these water resources in order to facilitate hydropower generation and other industrial  and sanitary uses. They are very effective in this, and their work has greatly reduced the historic flooding problems that have afflicted many downriver communities to the south, east and west of the Adirondacks.
    The HRBRRD does not itself generate power on any of its dams, but works with partners in doing so. The Regulating District raises its own operating funds largely from revenues from hydro generation, and this project would be a major help with that vital agency's financial difficulties. The Indian Lake dam is currently undergoing a major restoration with improvements that will make it even more suitable for hydropower and allow it to last another century.
The dam was built in 1898.  It holds the headwaters of the Indian River, a major tributary of the Hudson River. According to a feasibility study done as a part of the 2006 FERC application, the dam can generate up to 5.7 million Kw-hrs per year of carbon-free electricity.
To put it another way: Since electricity came to Indian Lake in 1922, the dam has wasted  almost 600 million kWHs of power, by failing to produce a single watt in all that time. That would have been enough to power 380,000 homes for a year, at today's rate of consumption.
    For a hundred years local residents have shaken their heads in dismay as they watched  countless trillions of gallons of water pour through the Indian Lake dam without ever being sensibly and safely exploited.
The Town’s most recent hydropower plan and its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission application also included the Town-owned Lake Abanakee dam six miles downstream, adding another 20% of energy to the total output).
    A project such as this would not only be a source of great pride, but it could also prove a boon to ailing local economies. In addition to the immediate shared revenues that would accrue to the Town and the HRBRRD, it could provide the Town of Indian Lake a tremendous opportunity to create an Industrial Development zone on beautiful lakeshore property it owns near the Abanakee dam. Such a zone could conceivably provide free power in addition to other incentives, to some kind of clean IT or other modern enterprise.
    Coupled with other seasonal assets, such as Gore Mountain, rafting, and traditional Adirondack outdoor recreation, this could be transformative to the entire region and result in a year-round powerhouse economy.
    It is our hope that the New York Power Authority might take an interest in this highly worthwhile, slam-dunk project and help begin a dialogue with these organizations and DEC to get this moving forward again. Its time has come!!

The Indian Lake Dam repair tour

                                             John Callaghan

John Callaghan, the Director of the Hudson River Black River Regulating District (HRBRRD) that operates and maintains many dams in Northern New York State, including the Adirondacks, was kind enough to arrange for the Indian Lake Association board members to see the ongoing repairs and maintenance that is underway on the 126-year-old Indian Lake dam. We were able to meet and talk to the engineers who are responsible for the repairs and modernization, creating a new concrete walkway along the top of the dam, filling and closing off all leaks in the dam's walls, and replacing the sluice gate and log gate so they can be opened and closed more efficiently. Director Callaghan and the engineers were very willing to answer all our questions and explain everything that we could see, and we left feling very confident that the job would be completed successfully, no matter what it will take. Check out the images of the tour in my photo gallery.

Come visit me tomorrow at the Shirt Factory!

Tomorrow I will be at the Shirt Factory from 10AM to 5 PM to participate in the first annual Book Fair for local authors, sponsored by the Black Walnut Book Store on the main floor of the Shirt Factory on Lawrence and Copper Streets in downtown Glens Falls. I will be selling all four of my books an a couple DVDs of Seneca Ray Stoddard's travelogues. Be there!

I'm not giving up on the idea of convincing the state to install a hydroelectric powerplant in the Indian Lake dam!

The need for clean energy is getting more apparent every day, and the fact that our state has passed legislation for new clean energy projects with the CLCPA makes the decades-long efforts to install hydro generation turbine(s) in our beautiful dam seem to be a no-brainer. yet, within some branches of the state government, there is resistence, even within the Department of Environmental Conservation! It seems they are concerned that, since there are many dams in the Adirondacks that do not currently generate electricity, the communities that have a dam would all want generators in their dams. Many or most of them are too small or unstable to be candidates, but others would be theoretical candidates.

The Indian lake dam has been shown repeatedly to be an ideal dam for hydropower generation, especially since it is currently undergoing the most thorough and expensive restoration and reinforcement it has ever undergone in its 126-year history. By 2025 it should be able to undergo whatever work would be necessary to generate hydropower. What is needed is a grass roots campaign to push the state to use the CLCPA to allow for the day that our beautiful dam could provide electricity for much of Hamilton County, which historically suffers more power outages than any other county per capita. Hopefully the efforts of the Indian lake Association will result in reversing this attitude. Stay tuned!!

Status of the Indian Lake Association's quest for hydropower for the Indian Lake and Abanakee Lake dams

Yesterday's Indian Lake Association (ILA) summer meeting was a great success, thanks to the planning of ILA President Glenn VanNorstrand, whose idea it was to have the meeting in the morning with a catered breakfast, before members are lured into their boats and onto the lake for the day. We even hosted several members of the Lake Abanakee Residents Association, who were impressed with the meeting. Helen "Cookie" Glass, our newest board member, handled the census taking and guest admissions.

Thanks also to to John Callaghan, Chairman of the Hudson River Black River Regulating District (HRBRRD) for his excellent talk to the attendees! He was kind enough to address the 87 members of the Indian Lake Association and guest members of the Lake Abanakee Homeowners Association who attended the annual ILA summer picnic meeting. He eloquently and clearly described the nature of the upcoming repair and maintenance work on our dam which is scheduled to begin this fall, which will resume through the fall of 2024. He patiently answered every question and left the audience reassured that the job will be done with minimal impact on lake water levels. When completed, the dam will be much sturdier, easier to operate, and no longer leaky, and it will sport a kayak take-out/put-in path for paddlers looking to run the headwaters of the Indian River in the future.

John Callaghan addressing the crowd

In answering questions from the audience, he assured them that, although the RD is not looking to have a hydroelectric powerplant inserted in the soon-to-be-restored dam, the dam could definitely be adapted for that purpose in the future.

 

 The 87 attendees of the 2023 ILA breakfast meeting in Byron Park, Indian Lake

I am too stubborn to give up on the idea of bringing hydroelectric power to the Town of Indian Lake! Some people are starting to call me Dan Quixote, but I am not chasing windmills- I am chasing a hydroelectric generator!!

Stay tuned....