The State - News from June 7, 1989

A federal appeals court has rejected arguments from Western states and environmental groups and ruled that states cannot regulate the flow of water from federally approved power dams. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, a presidentially appointed agency, has exclusive power under federal law to set standards for hydroelectric projects, including the water flows needed to protect fish, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled. A lawyer for California, whose attempt to set stricter standards on a rural dam was supported by 16 other states, said the state would consider a Supreme Court appeal and was “cautiously optimistic” of success. The ruling is “out of the mainstream of Congress’s traditional deference to state water laws,” said state Deputy Atty. Gen. Roderick Walston.