Dartmouth's Irving Institute, in Partnership with the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, Launches New Collaboration on Northeastern Rivers and Dam

Rivers are an important source of food, drinking water, ecosystem health, and recreation; and many of the dams found in rivers across the U.S. can be important in electricity generation, irrigation, flood control, and more. But some U.S. dams may pose significant safety and environmental problems, have no remaining useful role, and create serious controversy. The state of our nation's more than 90,000 dams has generated longstanding disagreement among river stakeholders and, until recently with little progress toward compromise and cooperation.

Given the importance of rivers in so many facets of society – and the challenges posed by the nation's dams –  is there a way to bring historic adversaries together to find common ground that can enhance river conservation, dam safety and also potentially add to the U.S. supply of carbon-free electricity?

In 2017, Dan Reicher '78, a Senior Scholar at Stanford's Woods Institute for the Environment (now part of the recently launched Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability) decided to find out. 

Through the Woods Institute's Uncommon Dialogue program, Reicher brought together key parties representing very different positions to make progress on dam-related conflicts. In the Uncommon Dialogue framework, the Woods Institute "help[s] leaders and other decision-makers address sustainability challenges by serving as a trusted source of scientific research and a neutral convener of diverse interests…..to co-develop practical solutions to pressing environmental concerns." Woods has a long history of addressing complex challenges through its Uncommon Dialogues including an effort that informed the implementation of California's landmark groundwater law (SGMA).  

The Woods Institute's Uncommon Dialogue on Hydropower, River Restoration, and Public Safety effort paid off by producing a major agreement among a diverse group of players and ultimately "resulted in the inclusion of $2.3 billion in the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to implement the Uncommon Dialogue agreement," according to the Woods Institute's website (NYT story about how the agreement originally came together here.) The funding is specifically for the "3Rs" of U.S. dams: rehabilitate some for safety; retrofit some for power; and remove some for conservation – and safety. 

While that first iteration of the Uncommon Dialogue on Hydropower, River Restoration and Public Safety has been a major success, Reicher, who serves as an Advisory Board member of Dartmouth's Arthur L. Irving Institute for Energy and Society, began talking with Irving Institute leadership about convening another Uncommon Dialogue on rivers and dams, but this time with a regional focus.

"Regions differ greatly when it comes to dams," explained Reicher. "The Northeast (New England and New York) has more than 21,000 dams, in a relatively small region. And the ownership is different from several other regions; it typically tends to be more private in the Northeast." 

After meetings between the head of the Woods Institute and with Irving Institute leadership, it was decided that Dartmouth would lead this Northeastern Uncommon Dialogue, working with Stanford. Reicher said, "I think the feeling is that this topic, pursued at a regional level, could speed up implementation of the 3Rs by increasing available funding and improving execution, with all the resulting benefits." 

Reicher was appointed Senior Fellow at the Irving Institute in spring 2024 to lead the Northeastern Rivers and Dams dialogue and advance a new collaboration between Dartmouth and Standord. In this role, Reicher builds on the Uncommon Dialogue on Hydropower, River Restoration, and Public Safety, as well as the Stanford UD on Large-Scale Solar Development and Land Conservation (NYT story here), and the recently launched Uncommon Dialogue on Transmission Siting and Cost Allocation. The Northeast Rivers and Dams Uncommon Dialogue, which kicked off with an exploratory convening in early June 2024, brought key players to campus from NGOs, industry, government — including Vermont's U.S.Senator Peter Welch and New Hampshire's U.S. Representative Ann Kuster '78 — as well as the investment community, academia, tribes, and other interested parties. 

"The Uncommon Dialogue on Northeastern Rivers and Dams will focus on the 3Rs of the more than 21,000 dams in New England and New York," explained Reicher, "and their related rivers and communities, key priorities, and critical funding needs."

The key to success with these convenings, said Reicher, is that "we're very careful about the process, making sure parties find value in the effort and we have a good shot at far-reaching real-world impacts." 

Stanford Woods Institute Director Chris Field said, "I am very pleased to have the Dartmouth Irving Institute as a new Woods' partner to take on the next phase of the Uncommon Dialogue on Hydropower and River Conservation. A regional focus on northeast rivers and dams holds great potential for continued progress and outcomes that have significant benefits for clean energy and river conservation." 

"Bringing Dan on to lead the Uncommon Dialogue on Northeastern Rivers and Dams makes perfect sense for the Institute and Dartmouth," said Irving Institute Faculty Director Geoff Parker. "Dan's long history of brokering successful and important agreements in energy and the environment, along with his long-standing commitment to Dartmouth and the Institute and his passion for rivers, align with the Institute's goal of productively engaging diverse stakeholders to advance our region's transition to clean energy. It also nicely complements the college-wide Dartmouth Dialogues initiative, in terms of working collaboratively with diverse groups to bridge divisions. We're looking forward to seeing what kind of impact can emerge from this important effort."