Monthly archive

The Milwaukee County Supervisors have recently approved a costly plan to turn the crumbling Estabrook Dam into a hydropower facility.

Milwaukee Riverkeeper (as stated earlier in our position paper) is against the repair of the Estabrook Dam, and we see the hydropower effort as another action by the County Board to find justification for keeping a failing dam that creates a safety hazard and provides little public benefit.  To read more about our position against hydropower click here.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorial staff recently agreed in an article stating, "it would require an extensive and expensive permitting process at the state and federal levels. And for what gain? To help cover the cost of extensive repairs of the dam and provide power for a small number of homes in the area."  The full article is below.

A recent Journal-Sentinel editorial echoed Milwaukee Riverkeeper's concern that Waukesha undertake an EIS (environmental impact statement) in its application for Great Lakes Water.

The Journal-Sentinel has reported that Milwaukee County could begin courting a private developer to build a hydroelectric power plant near Estabrook Dam under a plan the County Board's parks committee endorsed this week.

Milwaukee Riverkeeper (as stated earlier in our position paper) are against the repair of the Estabrook Dam, and we see the hydropower effort as another action by the County Board to find justification for keeping a failing dam that creates a safety hazard and provides little public benefit.