Power generated from Northwest dams fell last year to lowest level in two decades

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Hydropower generated for electricity from Oregon and Washington dams fell to historically low levels last year, and experts expect it could drop further by year’s end.

Officials at the U.S. Energy Information Administration recently published data showing that hydropower generation in the Northwest between Oct. 1, 2022 and Sept. 30, 2023 dropped to a 22-year low.

Eleven Western states produce up to 60% of the country’s hydroelectricity. Washington, California and Oregon are the three largest contributors, with Oregon and Washington producing more than one-third of all U.S. hydropower.

Both Oregon and Washington generated 20% less hydropower in 2023 than in 2021. The agency attributed this to low precipitation in the fall and winter, and the May 2023 “heat dome” that drove regional temperatures up 30 degrees Fahrenheit above average and rapidly melted snowpack in the region, which traditionally feeds rivers and streams steadily throughout the summer.

https://washingtonstatestandard.com/2024/04/03/power-generated-from-northwest-dams-fell-last-year-to-lowest-level-in-two-decades/