Hydropower is one of the smartest ideas in NID history.

As water travels from the high Sierra through the District's system, it doesn't just supply homes, farms, and businesses. Along the way, it generates clean, renewable electricity.

The same water does two jobs.

That simple idea has helped support NID's water system for more than a century.

A Vision Older Than NID

Here's something many people don't know:

Hydropower wasn't added to the District later. It was part of the plan from the beginning.

When community leaders campaigned to create the Nevada Irrigation District in 1921, they knew water sales alone would not be enough to finance the ambitious system they envisioned. Their solution was to use the energy of moving water to generate electricity and create revenue to help support water operations.

Campaign materials told voters that hydropower earnings would be essential to the District's success.

More than 100 years later, that vision is still paying dividends.

From Mountain Water to Renewable Energy

Hydropower works by capturing the energy of flowing water and using it to spin turbines connected to generators.

The concept is simple. The impact is enormous.

Today, NID operates eight hydroelectric power plants that generate enough electricity to power the District's operations and the equivalent of about 66,000 homes. Because hydropower relies on moving water rather than fossil fuels, it produces renewable energy without air pollution.

Building a Hydropower Legacy

Nevada County played an important role in the history of hydroelectric power long before NID was formed.

In 1887, residents of Nevada City and Grass Valley gathered in the streets to witness electric lights for the first time, powered by water-driven generation. By the 1890s, local entrepreneurs were harnessing Sierra rivers to provide electricity to area mines and communities.

Some of those early hydroelectric ventures eventually evolved into what became Pacific Gas & Electric Company.

The region helped pioneer California's hydroelectric future.

Powering Water Reliability

NID entered large-scale power production in 1965 with the completion of the landmark Yuba-Bear Hydroelectric Project, one of the most ambitious water and power developments in District history.

Today, NID's hydropower system includes:

⚡ 8 powerhouses

⚡ 13 reservoirs

⚡ More than 38 miles of pipes, flumes, tunnels, and canals

⚡ 87.9 megawatts of generating capacity

Hydropower revenue helps support the operation, maintenance, storage, and delivery of water throughout NID's mountain watershed and reservoir system.

In other words, the same water that generates electricity also helps support the reliable delivery of water to local communities.

A Century of Innovation

The technology has changed dramatically since the first water-powered generators appeared in Nevada County, but the principle remains the same.

Water moves.

Energy is created.

Communities benefit.

For more than 100 years, hydropower has helped transform Sierra water into a lasting resource for the people NID serves.

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➡️ The Yuba-Bear Project: The Project That Changed Everything