Making an old, small hydro dam center of a microgrid – maybe

A bunch of University of Vermont students are trying to resurrect an old dam that was swamped by Hurricane Irene and make it the hydropower centerpiece of a local microgrid. Interesting project – details from the UVM magazine are here.

Other groups of engineering students designed a new intake area for re-installing the hydro-electric power plant, devised solutions to minimize sediment build-up behind the dam, and evaluate the structural capacity to reuse a second building on the property which could be leased to local tenants—and possibly serve as office space for future UVM students.