Hydroelectric Power Projects Statement by the President.

In the course of the time I will be traveling on the Delta Queen, we will go through 27 locks and dams on the Mississippi River. The water flowing over these dams and through these locks holds tremendous promise as a source of hydroelectric power. Of all the locks and dams on the Mississippi River between St. Paul and St. Louis, only five have installed capacity. Clearly some of the .other existing locks and dams have hydroelectric potential. Other Corps of Engineers and Bureau of Reclamation existing structures around the Nation hold similar potential. We must move aggressively to begin to harness this power.

On the basis of the National Hydropower Study now being undertaken by the Corps of Engineers, it is clear that various Federal dams, locks, and other water projects would be suitable sites to be harnessed to produce hydroelectric power. I am today directing the Department of the Army, in conjunction with the Bureau of Reclamation and the Department of Energy, to develop necessary legislation which would give those agencies clearer, simpler authority to exploit the energy potential of existing Federal projects without requiring them to go through the full, protracted authorization process necessary for new construction projects in cases where the addition of the necessary turbines is economically justified and would not have an. adverse impact on the environment or on stream flows.

Recently, I took two other actions to greatly expand our hydroelectric activities across the country:

—At a ceremony in Des Moines, Iowa, on May 4, 1979, I announced a major new coordinated effort to identify and develop hydroelectric potential at existing dams around the country. Under that program, for each of the next several years DOE will administer a program through which communities could conduct feasibility and engineering studies of potential sites. Following an on-site review process, including DOE, the Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the FERC, the most promising sites would be encouraged to submit applications for construction grants, loans, and loan guarantees from EDA, FMFA, REA, CSA, and HUD. Over $300 million in resources have been reserved for this purpose through 1981.

The target goal of beginning construction on 100 rural hydro projects by the end of 1981 through the interagency effort will develop approximately 300 megawatts of additional capacity. Since I announced this program, several hundred local communities have expressed interest in participating. Federal field teams will be conducting on-site inspections at about 250 of the most promising prospects during August and September.

- At my direction the Bureau of Reclamation recently testified in Congress, seeking the authority for the Secretary of Interior to plan, design, and install hydroelectric facilities on 13 existing reclamation dams. This procedure will permit a much faster review for a project which is economically justified and which will not have significant adverse environmental or stream-flow effects.

The Corps National Hydropower Study included a review of thousands of Federal and non-Federal dams. Many of the more promising non-Federal dams are being subjected to on-site inspections as part of the program to reconstruct rural hydro sites, as announced in Des Moines. Of the Federal dams included in the Corps review, many appear to be candidates for new or additional hydroelectric facilities. While the energy-generating potential of these sites varies dramatically, the total potential for increased low-cost, clean, available power through this resource at Federal sites is great. For example, the locks and dams on the Mississippi River between St. Paul and St. Louis have an installed capacity of only 165.6 megawatts, while a preliminary Corps of Engineers study suggests a potential capacity of about 2,400 megawatts. I intend to see that this great national resource is utilized.