The future of hydropower and increasing the number of sockeye salmon in Sweetheart Lake was presented for those at the Chamber of Commerce luncheon at the Hangar on the Wharf Ballroom Thursday.
Duff Mitchell, Executive Director of Juneau Hydropower, talked about where the company currently stands with the dam project at Sweetheart Lake that could provide energy to Kensington Gold Mine, a mine located 45 miles from Juneau which currently uses diesel as a resource.
“This is a shovel-ready project,” Mitchell said.
Mitchell explained he has been working on the project since 2010 and received his license to do the project in 2016. The project has also gone through the Environmental Impact Statement and all regulation testing, according to Mitchell.
Mitchell provided a brief history lesson on the lake before fully discussing how this project could become a “big battery for Juneau.” The lake, which is 33 air miles south of Juneau, is $140 million project that Mitchell said would provide jobs and another resource of energy to Alaska’s capital city. At this time, Mitchell said Juneau Hydropower is working with AEL&P on an interconnection agreement allowing them to connect into Snettisham Hydroelectric Project, which would be the last piece of the construction puzzle.
“Right now we are working with AEL&P (Alaska Electric Light &Power) on getting an interconnection line agreement,” Mitchell said. “I am sure we will get it done.”
Once Juneau Hydropower gets that worked out, moving onto the project will take financing. Mitchell said Juneau-area investors have contributed with the project and that Juneau Hydropower has secured a loan with the U.S. Department of Energy. Mitchell said he would like to get started as soon as possible.
“This project would take two or three construction seasons,” he said. “We want to get this started because Kensington wanted power yesterday.”
Mitchell explained Kensington would like the hydropower as soon as it could get it because it is cleaner and more reliable than the diesel power it uses now.
“(Kensington) burns through a lot of energy,” Mitchell said in an interview.
Mitchell, through a Powerpoint presentation, showed the group what it will take and what will be done putting in the powerhouse and dam. The dam will be 111-feet tall and 280-feet high and was considered a “small dam”and will have no environmental impact through the EIS, according to Mitchell.
Mitchell showed a slide where the power plant would be blocked from sight with a mound built up that would block the sound and keep the area picturesque. The construction will be done without a road. A 9,000-foot tunnel will allow enough room for trucks and equipment through. Once the project is completed, the tunnel will then act as another line for water.
Mitchell also discussed how Sweetheart Lake could become a great area for collecting sockeye salmon. The idea with the dam, Mitchell said, is to have an area called a “collecting barge” that the salmon would believe is an outlet out of Sweetheart Lake. The fish would go into the “barge” and into buckets that would be transported down to the lower level of the area.
“This would increase fish in Sweetheart Lake by 50 percent because of the mortality rate of salmon going down the falls,” Mitchell said. “The commercial and personal fisherman will benefit from this.”
If all goes through according to plan, Mitchell believed the Sweetheart Lake could become an even more important factor in the area. Mitchell explained the Sweetheart Lake power source could act as a viable backup if it was ever needed in Juneau.
“In the end, this is ultimately good for Juneau,” he said.
• Contact reporter Gregory Philson at gphilson@juneauempire.com or call at 523-2265. Follow him on Twitter at @GTPhilson.
