On Thursday, March 9th, FirstLight Power received notice of an observed small oil sheen below the Turners Falls Dam. We immediately deployed our team to inspect the area and establish and implement solutions to address the issue, at all times in coordination with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). The team onsite identified two …
Continue reading “FirstLight Power Statement on Oil Sheen Observed at Turners Falls Dam”
NEW MILFORD, Conn. – January 23rd, 2023 – FirstLight, the owner and operator of the Rocky River pumped hydroelectric station, began the drawdown of Candlewood Lake, which includes Squantz Pond, on Friday, January 20th, 2023. The drawdown, executed in consultation with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, …
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New Milford, CT – FirstLight, the owner and operator of five hydroelectric facilities along the Housatonic River, today announced the rollout of an enhanced Flood Notification System for the communities below, or downstream of, the Stevenson Dam in Monroe, Connecticut. The Lower Housatonic River occasionally experiences floods due to poor weather and the thawing of …
Candlewood Lake — FirstLight, the owner and operator of the Rocky River pumped hydroelectric station, will initiate the drawdown season for Candlewood Lake, which includes Squantz Pond, after December 1, 2022 as weather conditions allow. The drawdown, executed in consultation with the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, …
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Dear Candlewood Lake Community Leaders, For more than a decade, FirstLight has voluntarily restricted our operations at the Rocky River Pumped Hydro station, largely shutting the facility down each year from the spring to the fall. This lost opportunity came at a substantial cost to our company, but we did so anyway to prevent the …
Continue reading “Letter to Community Leaders on Zebra Mussels in Candlewood Lake”
New Milford, CT – FirstLight Power issued the following statement today in response to the flood situation along the Housatonic River in Western Connecticut: “Last night, parts of Western Connecticut received substantial amounts of rainfall, which has led to a flood situation along parts of the Housatonic River. The National Weather Service forecast, which FirstLight …
An unexpected issue at the Rocky River Pumped Hydro Station has delayed the annual planned drawdown of Candlewood Lake. Unfortunately, what would normally be a very short-term maintenance repair has stretched into a much longer outage due to supply chain delays and Covid-related staffing shortages with our vendors. We expect the station to be repaired …
Burlington, Massachusetts, May 1, 2020 – FirstLight Power today announced updates to the availability of its recreation facilities in Massachusetts and Connecticut. “FirstLight’s first priority is to ensure the safety of our workforce and members of our community who use our trails, indoor public spaces, and restroom facilities,” said FirstLight Spokesman Len Greene. “Public use …
Continue reading “FirstLight Power Announces Updated List of Recreational Closures”
Responding to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ call for donations of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for front-line responders to the novel coronavirus pandemic, FirstLight Power has donated 100 N95 masks for use by staff at a regional healthcare facility. Donation of the masks, which are stocked for use by FirstLight employees during certain periodic cleaning and …
Early in this pandemic FirstLight implemented several new policies designed to increase protections for our employees and the communities we serve while maintaining our ability to provide clean electricity to the people of New England. We are complying with the guidance provided by state and federal public health authorities regarding workplace hygiene and cleaning practices, …
Continue reading “FirstLight Safety and Continued Operations During COVID Pandemic”