Santa Barbara's Pipe Dream: Hydropower for 124 Homes Gets Preliminary OK
Published Date: 5/15/2025
Notice
Summary
Goleta Water District wants to build a small hydropower project in Santa Barbara County that uses water pipes to generate clean energy without changing the water’s main use. The project could produce enough electricity to power about 124 homes a year and is under review now. People have until a set deadline to share their thoughts or get involved before the project moves forward.
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
FERC: No License Required
FERC staff preliminarily determined the Patterson Hydroelectric Energy Recovery Project meets the qualifying conduit criteria under section 30 of the Federal Power Act and therefore the facility is not required to be licensed or exempted from licensing. The applicant filed a notice of intent on May 6, 2025 for a project in Goleta, Santa Barbara County, California.
Small Local Hydropower Project Details
The proposed Patterson Hydroelectric Energy Recovery Project near Goleta, California would use a conduit for municipal water use, include one pump-as-turbine unit with 37 kilowatts of installed capacity, and is estimated to generate approximately 124 megawatt-hours annually without altering the conduit’s primary municipal use.
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