The company behind a planned hydroelectric dam 37 miles southeast of Juneau checked a crucial regulatory box this week.
Juneau Hydropower Inc., the company behind the Sweetheart Lake Hydroelectric Project, secured preliminary approval to operate a marine access facility on 3.8 acres of waterfront state land in Gilbert Bay, south of Juneau on the eastern side of Stephens Passage.
The preliminary approval is officially called a “tideland lease,” and will last for 50 years. The lease is “integral” to the project, said managing director Duff Mitchell. Without it, the company couldn’t get the supplies they need to Sweetheart Lake, where it plans to build a 280-foot wide concrete dam to power a 19.8 megawatt facility.
The company applied for the lease several years ago, but the Department of Natural Resources couldn’t approve the agreement until the Sweetheart Lake project received a federal license last September.
Juneau Hydropower is still several years from operation and hasn’t yet broken ground on the 9,621-foot tunnel needed to funnel water from Sweetheart Lake to turbines on lower lands. Mitchell said the company will start preliminary construction after snows melt this year.
The permit is going through a period of public comment and DNR may modify the decision based on public comments received. All comments must be submitted to the Division of Mining, Land and Water, Southeastern Regional Office by mail at 400 Willoughby Avenue, P.O. Box 111020. Comments are due April 10.
