Calls to remove Ellsworth dam grow after state issues 2nd water quality denial

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 12, 2026

Calls to remove an Ellsworth dam are mounting after the state signaled it would deny a water quality permit for the second time, renewing questions about the future of the Union River dams. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection has issued a draft denial to Black Bear Hydro Partners — a subsidiary of Brookfield Renewable that owns the Union River dam and the upstream Graham Lake dam — for its second water quality certification application, required for its federal relicensing effort. Black Bear Hydro was denied its last water quality certification in 2020, though the dams continue to operate on a temporary license.