Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2018
Abstract
This article examines legal issues regarding hydropower, fish and wildlife at federal water projects in the West. It begins by briefly explaining the legal and institutional framework for federal water projects that generate hydropower. The following section summarizes relevant laws and policies for fish and wildlife protection in relation to federal hydropower operations, focusing primarily on the application of the ESA in this context. The article then considers the case of Glen Canyon Dam, where the Bureau and the National Park Service recently adopted a new operating plan after an extensive review that addressed hydropower, the needs of two very different fish populations, and other concerns. It concludes with an observation about the relative importance of hydropower and environmental values at federal water projects.
Publication Title
Public Land & Resources Law Review
Volume
39
First Page
24
Last Page
59
Recommended Citation
Reed D. Benson,
Keeping Power in Charge: Federal Hydropower and the Downstream Environment,
39
Public Land & Resources Law Review
24
(2018).
Available at:
https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/law_facultyscholarship/659
