ortune time to build their dam, as the year 1837 is best known for the Panic of 1837, when banks folded and real estate plummeted. The dam supplied power for seven sawmills, a machine shop, and a gristmill, providing ample work for the residents of Augusta and surrounding areas thereby ensuring economical benefits and stability in the region. (McPhee,1999) Sometime in the 1880s the Edwards Manufacturing Company purchased the Augusta Dam from the Kennebec Dam Company, then renaming it the Edwards Dam. At that time the dam produced power for the Edwards cotton mill, one of the largest in the world employing one thousand people. The Edwards Dam continued to provide power uneventfully for the subsequent years leading up to the present time; it was equipped with hydroelectric power generation capabilities in 1913. Since the early 1960s the majority of the power generated has been sold to the Central Maine Power Company (Duane,Morris&Hecksher,Dec.1997). It seems as if it would be a lot of power, but in reality the dam produces 3.5 megawatts, which is only one-tenth of one percent of Maines annual energy use(Howe,1998). In 1983 the mill was closed down but the dam continued to generate power.The issue of removing the Edwards Dam originated when the owners license for operation expired, and an application was filed for a new one. Included in the application was a proposal to increase the dams generation capabilities, and to soften the blow of that expansion, a proposal was also made to provide fish passageways and recreational facilities. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (herein referred to as FERC or the Commission) assembled an Environmental Impact Statement(EIS) with the help of several state and federal agencies that consisted of an in-depth analysis of the options available. The statement covered everything from granting a new license containing necessary environmental measures to the denial of a license and ordering of th...
