Hydro Leader Magazine

11/12/2025

Check out our article on how NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration 's satellite measurements support reservoir management, floating solar, and more from our November/December issue.

Among its many missions, the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA) gathers and publishes sophisticated information on the earth’s surface and atmosphere and how energy from the sun reaches them. Paul Stackhouse and his team at NASA’s Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resources (POWER) project have developed an accessible platform that makes these climate data easily available to users, including power developers. While solar power is perhaps the most straightforward use case for these data, the hydropower industry should take note, also: Floating solar on reservoirs and hybrid floating solar–hydropower projects are increasingly prominent, and the POWER project’s data can also support reservoir operations and water management purposes. In this article, Mr. Stackhouse gives a behind-the-scenes look at the data collection process and explains why POWER’s offerings will only become more valuable as energy demand grows worldwide.

https://bit.ly/3JF1FuR

11/10/2025

11/07/2025

Check out our article on Donella Miller of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission saving treaty-protected salmon stocks and the Columbia River ecosystem.

As the fishery science manager for the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC), Donella Miller leads collaborative, science-driven efforts to restore native fish populations and uphold treaty-protected rights for the region’s tribal nations. In this interview, Hydro Leader learns of CRITFC’s expansive research programs, its vision for sustainable energy, and the importance of honoring tribal values in shaping the future of the Columbia River and other waterways in the region. Amid ongoing discussion regarding the interplay of hydropower, fisheries, and agriculture in the Pacific Northwest and the continuing controversy over the possible removal of four lower Snake River dams, this detailed and wide-ranging conversation will be of interest to stakeholders of all views and persuasions.

https://bit.ly/4nHFimm

11/05/2025

Check out our article on Kurt Miller advocating for hydro at the Northwest Public Power Association from our November/December issue.

Kurt Miller can boast of more than three decades in the utility sector in the Pacific Northwest, the last 2 years of which he has spent as the CEO and executive director of the Northwest Public Power Association - NWPPA which does training and education, advocacy, and communications for nonprofit, community-owned utilities across the American West. In this conversation, Mr. Miller provides us a detailed look at recent hydropower developments from the public power sector’s point of view, with a special focus on the nuances of the recently canceled Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement (RCBA). While explaining his organization’s concerns about the agreement and its relief over the cancellation, Mr. Miller also lays out the areas for collaboration and agreement he sees with regard to contentious issues in the Columbia basin.

https://bit.ly/47Fn7rE

11/04/2025

The November/December issue of Hydro Leader is here!

This month, we consider issues related to hydropower and marine wildlife in the Columbia and Snake Rivers from multiple angles. In our cover story, we interview Kurt Miller, a longtime public power professional who currently serves as the CEO and executive director of the Northwest Public Power Association - NWPPA , which advocates for more than 150 nonprofit, community-owned member utilities. Mr. Miller discusses the 2023 Resilient Columbia Basin Agreement (RCBA) and explains the serious concerns his organization’s members had about the plan and its potential effects, including the possible breaching of the lower Snake River dams. While he is “relieved” by the 2025 cancelation of the RCBA, Mr. Miller believes there are tangible alternative steps that can be taken to protect salmon and find “common ground and win-win outcomes.”

https://bit.ly/3LjJKKF