Washington, D.C.- On March 24th 2010, the US Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu and US Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced that the two agencies, along with the Army Corps of Engineers, will cooperate more closely and align priorities to support the development of environmentally sustainable hydropower. The Memorandum of Understanding represents a new approach to hydropower development - a strategy that can increase the production of clean, renewable power while avoiding or reducing environmental impacts and enhancing the viability of ecosystems. By signing a Memorandum of Understanding the federal agencies agree to focus on increasing energy generation at federally-owned facilities and explore opportunities for new development of low-impact hydropower.

Objectives of the MOU include:

· Identifying specific federal facilities that will be well-suited as sites for sustainable hydro power.

· Upgrading facilities and demonstrating new technologies at existing hydro power locations.

· Coordinating research and development on advanced hydro power technologies.

· Increasing hydropower generation through low-impact and environmentally sustainable approaches.

· Integrating policies at the federal level.

· Collaborating to identify total incremental hydro power resources at federal facilities.
The memorandum is supported by detailed action items that the agencies have identified as areas of collaboration, including Technology Development and Deployment; Green Hydro power Certification; Federal Inland Hydro power Coordination; Renewable Energy Integration and Energy Storage; and Regulatory Process Facilitation.

"While hydro power is the largest source of renewable electricity in the nation, hydropower capacity has not increased significantly in decades," said Energy Secretary Steven Chu. "As the single largest owner of hydropower generation in the United States, it is important for the federal government to tap this valuable asset so it can continue to contribute to our clean energy portfolio and energy security."

"As we build our clean energy economy here at home, we must explore and develop new technologies and new strategies for increasing hydro power generation in an environmentally sustainable manner," added Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. "With better coordination among federal agencies, a common-sense approach, and a focus on low-impact hydro power projects, we can supply more clean power for our economy."