On this very special episode of the podcast, we're joined by Grant PUD's senior manager of external affairs and communications, Chuck Allen. He shares the story of their recently released history book, "POWERING ON: The can-do legacy driving Grant PUD into the future by Grant PUD." While the history alone is fascinating, Chuck also wanted to celebrate the legacy and memory of it's author, John Harrison, who sadly passed away earlier this year. You can read the excellent book by following the lin...
Jul 11, 2025•1 hr 15 min
Dam! heads to the mighty Palouse to get the scoop on the Port of Whitman County. Executive director Kara Riebold and commissioner Kristine Meyer make the perfect duo to tell the story of multi-modal transportation, recreation, improvements to the community, and of course, the value of the river system.
Jun 04, 2025•44 min
Class is in session! The fifth episode of Hydro 101, a sub-series of the Dam! podcast, has arrived. Hydro 101 aims to provide you with a fundamental understanding of hydropower and how it interacts with energy and the environment–particularly in the Northwest. This episode explores the infrastructure responsible for solving vertical challenges on the water, the lock, from the historical development of the technology to an explanation of how a modern lock works like a water elevator....
Apr 03, 2025•18 min
The Columbia-Snake river system, that is. Neil Maunu, executive director at the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association, gives us the rundown on the integrated system of infrastructure that makes the Columbia and Snake rivers navigable. From locks and dams to dredging and jetties, it's an all hands on deck operation that provides critical services well-beyond just the Northwest, and on this episode we cover it all.
Mar 05, 2025•1 hr 2 min
There's a unique relationship between agriculture and hydropower that we've yet to fully explore on the podcast. That all changes with this latest episode, as Michelle Hennings from the Washington Association of Wheat Growers–a farmer herself–joins the podcast to discuss the multitude of benefits the dams provide to rural communities.
Jan 24, 2025•52 min
With Dam! winding down for 2024, we wanted to spend some time revisiting an incredible year of storytelling. You'll hear snippets from a handful of episodes, starting with our most-listened to of the year, that capture some of the most impactful moments shared on the podcast. For both those who missed these episodes or haven't heard them in sometime, we think you'll enjoy what we've put together.
Nov 29, 2024•58 min
While we love hydropower stories, we know that dams serve a multitude of purposes. In fact, many dams generate no power whatsoever. And, likewise, the community-owned, not-for-profit utilities that serve the Northwest offer more than energy. What remains the same is the universal commitment to environmental stewardship and collaborative solutions that benefit all. Today, we explore the story behind the non-powered Howard Hanson dam and the effort to bring fish passage to it–allowing salmon to re...
Nov 08, 2024•48 min
Just hearing mention of the four lower Snake River dams can stir up strong feelings for people who fall on either side of the debate over their future. Yet, it's rare to find someone who's actually stood atop–or within–these dams and spoken with the people who work at them at length. Ryan Hall, communications director at the Montana Electric Cooperatives Association and editor for Rural Montana, made it his mission to do exactly that and report what he found to communities across Montana. The fo...
Oct 25, 2024•1 hr 14 min
Class is in session! The fourth episode of Hydro 101, a sub-series of the Dam! podcast, has arrived. Hydro 101 aims to provide you with a fundamental understanding of hydropower and how it interacts with energy and the environment–particularly in the Northwest. This episode takes a deep dive into the units of measurement used to describe the generation and consumption of energy. By the end, you'll have a better idea of where watts came from, what they represent, and how to quantify them....
Oct 11, 2024•18 min
From deep into the interior Northwest to the mouth of the Columbia, river transportation is a vital yet overlooked service to the nation and the world. Rob Rich, vice president of marine services at Shaver Transportation, joins Dam! to shed a light on this "silent service," speak to the true value it provides, share the incredible opportunities it presents, and how all of this is interwoven with our hydroelectric dams.
Sep 27, 2024•1 hr 9 min
The future of hydropower and the utilities who depend on it across the Northwest rests in the future of our workforce. In the case of Grant PUD, that workforce is challenged by looming retirements and gaps in education and training. Yet, the utility is rising to meet those challenges head on, and convert them into opportunities for their employees and the rural community they serve. Joining us on this episode to provide more details and tell his own unique story is Grant's general manager and CE...
Sep 13, 2024•56 min
"Misinformation does not serve our region or policymakers and doesn’t recover salmon." That's the message Northwest RiverPartners executive director, Clark Mather, delivered in a recent statement. That statement was in response to a campaign aimed at undermining bipartisan legislation simply meant to maintain the federal government’s commitment for the Bonneville Power Administration to spend no more than $300 million in additional funds to implement the 12/14 agreement. On this special episode ...
Aug 30, 2024•40 min
Put your party hats on! President and CEO of the National Hydropower Association, Malcolm Woolf, returns to Dam! to hype us up for National Hydropower Day and the upcoming celebration. He also provided us with updates on the state of hydropower in 2024, the challenges and opportunities ahead, ongoing work on bipartisan legislation, and the need to build momentum and increase visibility for our favorite resource.
Aug 16, 2024•51 min
If you've ever wondered what the deal is behind the "Our Power is Water" campaign we've been running here at Northwest RiverPartners for the past four years, this is the podcast for you! We caught up with North's CEO, Rebecca Armstrong, to discuss digital advertising for a good cause, the nuance of telling hydropower stories in the Northwest, and the exciting, yet terrifying future introduced by artificial intelligence. If that wasn't enough, you'll get the scoop on North's partnership with the ...
Aug 02, 2024•59 min
Class is in session! The third episode of our new sub-series of the regular Dam! podcast is here. Hydro 101 aims to provide you with a fundamental understanding of hydropower and how it interacts with energy and the environment–particularly in the Northwest. On this installment, we walk through the timeline of events and happenings that span the era of dam-building in the region–giving birth to hydro and public power as we know it today.
Jul 19, 2024•21 min
Fish passage is a serious matter for hydropower–especially for our Federal hydro system in the Columbia River basin. Like the dams themselves, maintaining and updating fish passage infrastructure is essential to achieving the best possible results for our aquatic friends. One of the leaders in this field is Natel, who designs fish-safe turbines to replace aging turbines and eliminate the need for bypass systems for juvenile salmon. Joining us on this episode to detail this win-win in design is N...
Jul 05, 2024•1 hr 2 min
Energy storage is not only essential to meeting our growing electricity needs, it also ensures a reliable grid. And, in places where even accessing that energy is a challenge, energy storage can alleviate the pressure on transmission infrastructure. Ravalli Electric Cooperative's slice of rural Montana is one such place, but with the help of the Pacific Northwest Generating Cooperative–or PNGC–they've secured a grant to build a new battery storage project to help overcome these challenges. On th...
Jun 21, 2024•1 hr
The first step to solving a problem, is admitting you have one. We've known the demand for energy is outpacing our ability to build new generation, all while coal is retiring at a swift pace. Now, PNUCC's 2024 Northwest Regional Forecast is showing a clear gap in where we're headed, and where we need to be. It all sounds a bit scary, so we reached out and connected with their executive director, Crystal Ball, to give us the full context around the forecast and what it means for our clean energy ...
Jun 07, 2024•1 hr 7 min
Class is in session! The second episode of our new sub-series of the regular Dam! podcast is here. Hydro 101 aims to provide you with a fundamental understanding of hydropower and how it interacts with energy and the environment–particularly in the Northwest. As the title suggests, this one is all about fish passage and the infrastructure that allows our scaly friends to migrate up and down river of our local dams.
May 24, 2024•21 min
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!
May 10, 2024•1 hr 2 min
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!
Apr 26, 2024•1 hr 18 min
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 f...
Apr 12, 2024•1 hr 27 min
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 wr...
Mar 29, 2024•59 min
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 ...
Mar 15, 2024•1 hr 11 min
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 pre...
Mar 01, 2024•53 min
Clearwater Power's Bob Pierce is not just their COO–he's also the author of "Ask Bob." In this podcast, we ask Bob what "Ask Bob" is, how he got started answering questions from the community, and revisit some of his most popular questions over the years to get his take. As you'll hear, there's a Dam! good reason he's the guy to go to when you've got questions about energy and hydropower!
Feb 16, 2024•55 min
Class is in session! "But hold on, what happened to my Dam! podcast?" Hey, no worries, Dam! isn't going anywhere. This week, we're releasing a special episode as part of a new sub-series of the regular podcast that aims to provide you with a fundamental understanding of hydropower and how it interacts with energy and the environment–particularly in the Northwest. That fundamental understanding is essential to grasping the more in-depth discussions we love having with our expert guests. We welcom...
Feb 02, 2024•29 min
We're joined by Bree Mendlin, program director at the Hydropower Foundation, to discuss the various pathways and opportunities available to those interested in joining the waterpower workforce. Along the way, we take a deeper dive into the education efforts, STEM programs, competitions, and college clubs all helping guide students on their career journey, and hear about those who have successfully made that transition from student to employee.
Jan 19, 2024•1 hr 6 min
What do the three subjects in the title of this podcast have in common? They're all important aspects of the work being done by Sean Simmons and Angler's Atlas. On this episode of Dam! , Sean explains Angler's Atlas, discusses the importance of citizen science, how the MyCatch app and angling tournaments are bringing in valuable fish data, and how he hopes to use similar methods with the Salmon Prize–a competition aimed at producing models that can better predict salmon returns.
Jan 05, 2024•1 hr 12 min
In our final episode of the year, we introduce Dam! listeners to Northwest RiverPartners' new interim executive director, Heather Stebbings. Transitioning from her prior role with the Pacific Northwest Waterways Association, Heather brings a wealth of knowledge about the lower Snake River dams issue to the table. We discuss her background, her plans as interim, and the continuity she hopes to provide to the organization during this time of transition.
Nov 17, 2023•58 min
