The British Hydro Association is a trade association which represents the interests of those in the hydropower industry in the United Kingdom lobbying to protect the interests of their members. They also promote micro-hydro and Pico Hydro power generation.

There has recently been a lot of worry about the potential negatives of hydro power, in particular the effect of large dams on climate change, global warming , and other environmental effects. The BHA has an official policy statement (PDF document) on this topic underlining the principle of sustainable development and the importance of careful project development. By mitigating the risks they feel that the socio-economic benefits of hydropower far outweigh any negatives.

Of particular interest is an excellent searchable directory of hydro installations which you can use to find hydroelectric schemes by their power output or by UK county. Included are everything from small scale mill conversions (outputs of well below 10kW) up to enormous power stations putting out hundreds of Megawatts of electricity such as the Dinorwig Power Station pictured below.

On the BHA website is another excellent resource: Mini-Hydro: A Step by Step Guide. Covering installations generating sufficient electricity for one home up to those generating a couple of hundred kW for sale to the National Grid, this guide covers the basic concepts of hydropower generation, technology, funding, and project development.

To find out more about the British Hydro Association click here to visit the BHA official website.