Dorchester County officials pressed state environmental leaders Tuesday over a new agreement involving Conowingo Dam, raising concerns about downstream water quality and limited plans for dredging behind the nearly 100-year-old structure.
Constellation Energy, the private utility that owns and operates the hydroelectric dam on the Susquehanna River, reached a $340 million settlement with the Maryland Department of the Environment this fall as part of its bid to secure a new federal license.
Constellation generates and sells electricity from the dam, which has been filled with decades of sediment and nutrients flowing from Pennsylvania into the upper Chesapeake Bay.
The dam once trapped much of that material, but the reservoir is now nearly full. During major storms, large pulses of sediment and nutrients can rush past the dam and into the Bay, harming water quality and aquatic habitat. Council members said those downstream impacts fall heavily on Bay-dependent communities like Dorchester.
The settlement requires Constellation to fund a range of environmental projects over 50 years, including debris removal, fish and eel passage work, freshwater mussel restoration, invasive species control, and water-quality projects.
About $19 million is set aside for sediment modeling, feasibility studies, and early permitting for dredging, though the agreement does not commit the company to large-scale sediment removal.
Several members said the dredging funds are insufficient and questioned why Constellation would receive a 50-year federal license. State officials said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission commonly issues 30- to 50-year licenses for major hydroelectric facilities but noted Maryland can petition for modifications under the Clean Water Act.
Officials also said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is preparing a detailed sediment model, due in 2026, that will help determine whether major dredging is environmentally and economically viable.
Council President George L. Pfeffer Jr. and Vice President Mike Detmer, both recently re-elected to their leadership posts, said Dorchester cannot support the settlement without firmer commitments on dredging and Bay protections. State officials said counties will have a role in shaping how mitigation funds are used.
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