Dam‪!‬ Northwest RiverPartners

With the hiring of Northwest RiverPartner's newest executive director, Clark Mather, it was only a matter of time before we would introduce him to the Dam! podcast listeners. That time is now. You'll hear Clark describe his background, just how small the public power world really is, his views on the value of hydropower, and takes on the most relevant and pressing issues we face in 2024. The next chapter in our hydropower advocacy effort starts now!

Dam! hit the road and headed to Seattle, Washington, to record this special episode on site at the 2024 US Society on Dams annual conference. We opened up the guest chair to anyone looking for their "15 minutes of fame" on the podcast, and the lineup did not disappoint. Listen in to hear from the likes of Jeremy Begley, Dr. Nathaniel Gee, and Dr. Robert Hall and enjoy their expert insights and stories!

Fears of drought, extreme weather, and a future full of uncertainty are not without reason. Climate change is front of mind for many, and reinforced by an onslaught of headlines and social media content. All of this begs the question, can our hydropower resources in the Northwest survive? If anyone is qualified to answer that question, it's Erik Pytlak, who manages weather and streamflow forecasting at the Bonneville Power Administration. On this episode, Erik shares the ins and outs of making forecasts and predictions, and answers our burning questions about the future of hydro as we know it.

On this episode of Dam!, we're joined by Rebekah Anderson, senior manager of communications at Tacoma Public Utilities and author of The Grand Promise. Her award-winning fiction novel captures life during the construction of Grand Coulee dam and illustrates the positive and negative impacts that it had on nearby communities. Of course, you'll have to read the book for yourself to get the full story, but Anderson shared the inspiration and history that were instrumental to the narrative, her writing process, how it changed her perspectives on hydropower and public works as a whole, and much more.

To know of hydropower and to love it go hand-in-hand. Today, the challenge is that less and less people actually know much about hydropower at all. The Foundation for Water & Energy Education, or FWEE for short, is tackling that challenge head on by bringing hydro to the classroom in creative and exciting ways. Sheila Corson, serving as acting the acting board chair, joins Dam! to share the important mission of FWEE, how they educate educators, the numerous ways students can get engaged and identify potential career paths, and the power of the PowerWheel and its ability to bring joy and excitement to people of all ages. Listen on, and you'll also hear how you can get involved and help bring hydro education to your community!

In January of 2024, a blanket of extreme cold and ice was cast over the Northwest. The winter storm presented many threats, and our grid was not immune to them. Despite extremely high energy demand, our abundance of hydropower ensured we never faced shortages and rolling blackouts. We reached out to the Bonneville Power Administration, who supplies that energy to public utilities across the region, to get the full scoop. On this very special episode, we were joined by Michelle Cathcart, vice president of generation asset management, who provided her insight and expertise on the January storm, how BPA tackles storms as a whole, and what lessons we can learn from this event.