Pittsfield, Maine – February 11, 2020 – The Environmental Business Journal® (EBJ) has honored Kleinschmidt Associates with the Project Merit Award in Hydropower for the work performed on the Opal Springs Fish Passage Project for the Deschutes Valley Water District in Crooked River, Oregon. Kleinschmidt served as Program Manager for the project.
In November 2019, work was completed on the Deschutes Valley Water District’s (DVWD) fish ladder and hydropower expansion at the Opal Springs Hydroelectric Project. The ladder connects habitat and improves resiliency for anadromous salmon and steelhead in the Deschutes Basin while increasing the amount of renewable hydropower output at the project by 1,010 megawatt-hours (MWh) annually. The 13-year-long effort was a collaboration between DVWD, resource agencies, and non-governmental organizations to address aquatic habitat access in a watershed where historic runs of salmon and steelhead were extirpated. The project is certified by the Low Impact Hydropower Institute (LIHI) to be in compliance with its criteria.
Finlay Anderson, who managed the project for Kleinschmidt, noted that “this effort benefited from a strong culture of collaboration and problem-solving in the Deschutes Basin by stakeholders who have been working to improve habitat and support the reintroduction of anadromous species.”
“As the project owner, we have experienced firsthand the benefits of assembling a strong project management team to organize and prioritize the various stakeholder interests and support the interconnected organizational relationships over the extended duration of the project,” says Joel Gehrett, General Manager, Deschutes Valley Water District.
The 2019 EBJ awards will be presented at a special ceremony at the Environmental Industry Summit XVIII in San Diego, California, on March 19, 2020. The Environmental Industry Summit is an annual three-day executive retreat hosted by EBI, Inc.
About Kleinschmidt
Kleinschmidt Associates performs engineering, regulatory and environmental consulting for North American energy companies and governmental agencies who strive to protect and enhance the natural environment without compromising performance. We work at the intersection of regulatory requirements, environmental science, and engineering solutions to achieve our client’s objectives.
About the EBJ Business Achievement Awards
In October-December 2019, Environmental Business Journal solicited nominations for the EBJ Business Achievement Awards. Nominations were accepted in 200-word essays in specific categories. Final awards were determined by a committee of EBJ editorial advisory board members. (Disclaimer: company audits were not conducted to verify information or claims submitted with nominations)
About EBI
Founded in 1988, Environmental Business International Inc. (San Diego, California) is a research, publishing and consulting company that specializes in defining emerging markets and generating strategic market intelligence for companies, investors and policymakers. EBI publishes Environmental Business Journal® and Climate Change Business Journal®. EBI also performs contract research for the government and private sector and founded the Environmental Industry Summit Series – four annual conferences for executives in the environmental industry.