American Whitewater

Holtwood Whitewater Park to Open this Month (PA)

03/05/2015 - by Kevin Colburn

The schedule for the first year of operation of the Holtwood Whitewater Park has been posted on the dam owner's website. American Whitewater and our local partners negotiated the construction of the park and 264 hours of releases annually as mitigation for impacts of the Holtwood Hydroelectric Project. The first scheduled release is on Saturday March 14, 2015.

12/15/2014 - by Kevin Colburn

Anticipation was running high for the first public dam releases on the newly constructed Holtwood Whitewater Park this fall, however the final round of testing in early October revealed more work was needed before opening the park. Testing and modifications are ongoing, and we'll release a schedule of releases early next year. The good news is that the waves are going to be incredible.

08/09/2012 - by Kevin Colburn

Earlier this week the owner of the Holtwood Hydroelectric Project on the Susquehanna River (PA) initiated a construction process that will result in two sizeable whitewater waves at the base of a defunct fish ladder on the west side of the dam. Once completed, the waves will be activated by 264 hours of scheduled water releases each year as well as by significant periods of spill. The waves will provide for high quality freestyle kayak surfing opportunities. Construction is anticipated to be complete by year end, and releases should begin no later than the summer of 2013.

Final Holtwood Plan Ready For Federal Approval (PA)

01/03/2012 - by Kevin Colburn

On December 15th, 2011, the owner of Holtwood Dam on the Susquehanna River submitted a whitewater boating plan to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for approval. The plan calls for two new whitewater features to be built immediately downstream of Holtwood Dam along the York County side of the Susquehanna River at the base of a defunct fish ladder. It is anticipated that the construction of the features will occur in 2012, and will be fully operational in 2013.

Holtwood Project Back on the Table (PA)

04/13/2009 - by Kevin Colburn

Last week, the owner of the Holtwood Hydroelectric Project on the Susquehanna River resubmitted their project expansion proposal to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and requested expedited approval. This action restarts the process for modifying the Holtwood Project that was shelved in December. American Whitewater and our partners are working with the owner to fully implement the settlement agreement we signed last year to minimize and mitigate recreational impacts of this hydro-project expansion.

Dam Owner Pulls Plug On Holtwood Expansion (PA)

12/09/2008 - by Kevin Colburn

Yesterday the owner of Holtwood Dam on the Susquehanna River announced that they would not move forward with their plans to install additional generation capacity to their dam. In a statement on their website, William H. Spence, executive vice president and chief operating officer of PPL Corporation stated: "As we evaluated this project in light of current economic conditions and projections of future energy prices, we reached the conclusion that it is no longer economically justifiable.”