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Press Release: Victory December 20, 2022

Conowingo Dam’s Relicensing is Illegal, Federal Court Rules

Millions of tons of pollution pass through the dam into the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay

The Conowingo Dam.
(Aaron Harrington / CC BY-SA 2.0)
From the Experts June 11, 2018

Conowingo Dam Threatens to Dump Sediment Into Chesapeake Bay

We’re challenging Maryland’s thumbs-up for the renewal of the dam’s license.

In the News: Chesapeake Bay Journal June 18, 2021

Environmental groups file suit challenging Conowingo Dam license

James Pew, Attorney, Washington, D.C., Office, Earthjustice: “Federal law is quite clear that FERC lacks authority to issue a license on these terms.”

Press Release July 17, 2013

Groups Seek to Lessen Impacts of Conowingo Dam on Susquehanna River, Chesapeake Bay

Move to intervene in relicensing proceeding for dam

Article July 17, 2013

Conowingo Dam Owners Must Clean Up Their Act

The Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper, Stewards of the Lower Susquehanna and Waterkeepers Chesapeake today asked to be included in the relicensing proceedings for the Conowingo Dam, about 50 miles northeast of Baltimore. The dam affects water quality up and down the Susquehanna River and throughout Chesapeake Bay, and the groups plan to push the Federal Energy…

The Conowingo Dam stores enormous amounts of sediment, phosphorus and other pollutants.
(Photo courtesy of Matt Tillet)
case July 17, 2013

Mitigating Impacts of Conowingo Dam on Susquehanna River, Chesapeake Bay

The Conowingo Dam stores enormous amounts of sediment, phosphorus and other pollutants. When too much sediment reaches the Chesapeake Bay it clouds the bay’s waters, harming the underwater vegetation there and the animals that rely on it. While the dam has been trapping sediment since it began operation in 1928, scientists estimate that its retention…

document June 8, 2018

Conowingo Dam: Administrative Appeal

Administrative Appeal of Final Decision to Issue Clean Water Act Section 401 Certification for the Conowingo Hydroelectric Project

(Ren Photo / Getty Images)
Press Release April 26, 2019

Earthjustice Responde a la Orden Ejecutiva Del Presidente Trump e Insta a la EPA en Garantizar Transparencia y Aporte del Público en las Protecciones de Agua Limpia

Una carta dirigida al administrador Wheeler se opone a los esfuerzos para socavar la autoridad de los estados y tribus en la protección de la calidad del agua en virtud de la Ley de Agua Limpia

Section 401 of the Clean Water Act empowers states and tribes to assess the impacts of federal projects on rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands within their borders.
(Ren Photo / Getty Images)
Press Release April 23, 2019

Earthjustice Responds to Trump Executive Order, Urges EPA to Ensure Transparency and Public Input in Clean Water Protections

Letter to Administrator Wheeler objects to efforts to undermine authority of states and tribes to protect water quality under the Clean Water Act

From the Experts April 3, 2019

The McConnell Special: A Lifetime Appointment in Two Hours or Less

The Senate is expected to move forward this week on a plan to limit debate on nominees.

NEPA allowed these individuals to advocate for removing four dams on the lower Snake River to restore wild salmon runs. They are four of the more than 480,000 people who made their voices heard on this issue. Pictured, clockwise from the top left, are former Idaho Fish and Game biologist Steve Pettit, Executive Director of the Nez Perce Tribe Rebecca Miles, Earthjustice attorney Todd True, and Nez Perce tribal member Elliott Moffett.
(Chris Jordan-Bloch / Earthjustice)
From the Experts April 1, 2019

Trump Chips Away At The Shield Against Environmental Racism

To understand just how devastating such a rollback to core environmental law would be, we need only consider what the world was like before NEPA existed.

Dams, like the Ice Harbor on the lower Snake River, may not be as green as they first seem. The Ice Harbor Dam and others have transformed the Columbia and lower Snake rivers, drastically altering natural river flows and posing lethal obstacles to salmon migration.
(Bonneville Power Photo)
Article December 16, 2014

Coming Clean: Hydropower’s Dirty (Energy) Secrets

Dams are often touted as being green, but a deeper looks uncovers some dirty truths about their environmental impact.