WINSLOW – A portion of a dam that has blocked the Sebasticook River for a century could come down this summer.

Planners in Winslow have given their OK to a plan to remove a portion of the Fort Halifax Dam. The owner, FPL Energy, says the first stages of the project could begin in mid-July.

Several Maine dams have been breached during the past several years to let sea-run fish return to their natural spawning habitats. State officials say a dozen dams were breached in the 1990s, including the Edwards hydroelectric dam downstream along the Kennebec River in Augusta.