"An Energy Department report shows that while hydro can be finicky, it could be a bigger part of a carbon-reduced future."

"Since the days when Woody Guthrie sang that Uncle Sam needed the Columbia River to "do some work for me," hydropower has been a part of the country’s energy landscape. But according to a new Energy Department report, hydro still has more work to do.

Hydroelectricity, after decades of fits and starts, has been growing in the past several years, according to this report, which the department called the most comprehensive review in many years.

Most of the recent renaissance has not come from major new projects, said a summary of the report. Mostly it has been harvesting 'low-hanging fruit.'"

John H. Cushman Jr. reports for InsideClimate News April 28, 2015. [2]