New York power

Generates renewable electricity from the West Canada Creek, supporting New York communities and producing enough electricity for about 6,900 homes for a year.*

Air quality & health in Oneida County

Oneida County has a population of 227,555. Across five conditions the American Lung Association tracks — childhood asthma, adult asthma, COPD, lung cancer, and cardiovascular disease — it reports a combined 47,467 cases in the county.

Federal monitoring recorded 211 days of good air quality and 50 moderate days in the county over the most recent year, with 0 days rated unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Long-term exposure to air pollution has been linked to certain health conditions, particularly for children and older adults. Where electricity comes from affects how much combustion pollution is produced on the grid.

These figures describe the county as a whole and are not specific to this facility. Sources: American Lung Association – State of the Air (New York); U.S. EPA Air Quality Index.

The story behind this New York renewable energy facility

The Prospect hydropower plant in Oneida County ranks #20 of New York’s 142 hydropower plants by electricity produced in 2024. Hydropower uses flowing water to spin a generator, and this plant draws on West Canada Creek. Erie Boulevard Hydropower LP owns it, and it has operated since 1959.

In 2024 it produced 69.1 gigawatt-hours (a gigawatt-hour is a very large unit of electricity), enough to power about 6,900 homes. Its one generator has a capacity of 19.0 MW (megawatts, the most electricity it can produce at one moment). Its conventional design means water running through the plant turns the generator directly.

Environmental impact

Produces electricity without burning fuel, which avoids roughly 27,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide a year compared with producing the same electricity from the national mix of power sources — about the same as not burning about 3,100,000 gallons of gasoline.*

Nearby places worth exploring

Prospect sits in the Mohawk Valley, not far from Utica and Rome. In Rome, Fort Stanwix National Monument and the Erie Canal are well-known stops for history lovers. The eastern shore of Oneida Lake also touches the county.

Local school district

Poland Central School District

Common questions

* Homes-powered and emissions comparisons are annual estimates based on national averages from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. “Homes powered” describes a quantity of electricity, not direct service to specific households. How we calculate this.