Carly Hansen, a water resources engineer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, is rethinking what’s possible for hydropower in the United States.

Using her skills in engineering, remote sensing and data science, Hansen asks big questions about new hydropower development and what role this unique power source might play in accelerating the country’s transition to clean, flexible and secure energy.

Hydropower is a major source of the nation’s renewable energy, accounting for about 7% of U.S. electricity generation. As a contributor to ORNL’s Standard Modular Hydropower project, or SMH, Hansen is part of a team working to expand small hydropower projects using an approach that emphasizes cost-effectiveness and sustainability.

A key focus of the SMH project is identifying opportunities to add hydropower at the country’s more than 91,000 non-powered dams – those that don’t currently produce energy.