On October 14, 2011, the City of East Providence (City) applied for a Preliminary Permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to explore redeveloping hydropower at the Hunt’s Mill Dam on the Ten Mile River in East Providence, Rhode Island. The filing can be downloaded below or can be accessed through the FERC eLibrary (http://elibrary.ferc.gov/idmws/search/fercgensearch.asp / Docket No. 14306).

Over the coming year the City will be conducting a variety of studies to further assess the feasibility of the project and explore the potential for hydropower development to provide public benefits. Depending on the outcome of these studies, the City will prepare and submit formal development applications to the FERC for their review and approval. Throughout the pre-development process the City will look to engage stakeholders and the public in the process.

At this point we anticipate that construction associated with this project will be confined to the local area around the dam. The project would be operated in a “run-of-river” mode and thus would not change the existing pond levels or river flows. In fact, development of the project would help ensure the long-term maintenance of the dam and pond. In addition, the project would be designed and operated in a manner compatable with completed and on-going efforts to restore anadromous fish passage to the Ten Mile River.

Background Documents:

• Ten Mile River Watershed Hydropower Feasibility Study
• Hunt’s Mill Waterpower Project Preliminary Permit Application
• Ten Mile River Ecosystem Restoration Project Website (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)