Vermont has just signed a 26-year deal for energy with Hyrdo-Quebec. See here. But, as I have previosuly noted, should hydro-electric power be considered renewable energy?
August 13, 2010
Is hydro-electric power renewable energy? Power deal between Hydro-Quebec and Vermont
Posted by Jason J. Czarnezki under Energy, Environment, Law1 Comment
JASON J. CZARNEZKI 
July 5, 2012 at 5:59 PM
This arbitrary exclusion of hydroelectricity from renewable energy programs cannot be scientifically justified. It is impossible to establish theoretical differences between hydropower and wind power.
• Both are indirect forms of solar energy.
• Neither increase entropy, unlike fossil fuels .
• Both have short and efficient energy chains, again unlike fossil fuels.
For these reasons, all hydro projects, independent of size, are sources of renewable energy
It is a popular misconception that large hydro projects have greater environmental impact than small projects. Actual comparisons, based on units of energy produced, show the error in this misconception: a single large hydro project can have much less impact than the cumulative effects of many smaller projects yielding the same power and generating capacity.
Geometry tells us that for a given increase in volume, the corresponding increase in surface area is not linear (doubling the volume of a cube only increases surface area by 60%), meaning that one 1000MW hydro dam will affect less environment than forty 25MW dams will. Table 1, based on existing hydro installations worldwide, demonstrates the point. Consider also that the single 1000MW project will require fewer and more closely related mitigation efforts than the 40 smaller projects that could all affect different ecosystems.
While it is obvious that a single small intervention will have less socio-environmental impact than a large one, the true comparison lies in the ability to meet the TOTAL energy and power requirement (quantity, quality, flexibility, etc…). Given this viewpoint, the impact of a single large project may be significantly less than the cumulative impact of many small projects.