WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, Oct. 18, U.S. Deputy Secretary of the Interior Michael L. Connor will participate in a panel discussion at the Center for American Progress (CAP) to explore the future of policymaking related to removing obsolete and aging dams across the United States. The panel, titled “Assessing the Condition of America’s Dams and Rivers,” will also include Taxpayers for Common Sense Vice President Steve Ellis, Patagonia President and CEO Rose Marcario and Executive Director of the Nez Perce Tribe Rebecca Miles. Center for American Progress Senior Fellow David Hayes will deliver opening remarks.
In the United States, dams can provide numerous benefits such as water supply, hydropower and flood protection. However, tens of thousands of small dams across the country no longer supply these benefits and can be a burden to local communities, a threat to public health and safety and an obstacle to healthy ecosystems. According to CAP, by 2020, more than 65 percent of dams will be past their designated lifespan.
Recent dam removals like the Hughesville Dam removal in Pennsylvania highlight the nationwide effort by the Obama Administration to work with local communities and governments at the state and local levels, along with private dam owners, to address the challenges posed by obsolete dams. Over 1,000 obsolete dams in the United States have been removed in the last century, with more than half of them removed in the past 10 years.
WHO:
Michael L. Connor, U.S. Deputy Secretary of the Interior
Rose Marcario, President and CEO, Patagonia Inc.
Rebecca Miles, Executive Director of the Nez Perce Tribe
Steve Ellis, Vice President, Taxpayers for Common Sense
David Hayes, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress
WHAT:
Panel discussion on America’s dams and rivers
WHEN:
Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2016
9:45 AM EDT – Media check-in
10:00 AM EDT – Panel discussion begins
WHERE:
Center for American Progress
1333 H Street NW, 10th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20005
MEDIA:
Credentialed members of the media must RSVP here.
Source: Department of Interior
