Higher standards

sought for 5 dams

SAXTONS RIVER — A group that works to protect the Connecticut River says it wants tougher standards for five dams on the waterway as they come up for relicensing.

The Connecticut River Watershed Council is weighing in as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission considers whether to grant new 30-year licenses to the Wilder, Bellows Falls and Vernon dams between Vermont and New Hampshire, and the Turners Falls Dam and Northfield Mountain Pump Storage project in Massachusetts.

The council is calling for improved fishing and boating access, better portage facilities, more and better campsites along the river, and migratory fish viewing facilities that support educational programs and are accessible for the disabled.

It also wants studies conducted to see whether it would be better to decommission and remove one or more of the dams.