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Supreme Court Supports State Stream‐Flow Limits
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal ‐ american water works association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.466
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1551-8833
pISSN - 0003-150X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1551-8833.1995.tb06311.x
Subject(s) - supreme court , streamflow , law , certification , state (computer science) , hydroelectricity , state supreme court , clean water act , political science , business , water quality , engineering , drainage basin , computer science , geography , cartography , algorithm , ecology , electrical engineering , biology
A city and local utility district in Washington wanted to build a hydroelectric project on the Dosewallips River, a Class AA water. The project would reduce water flow in the relevant part of the river to a minimal residual flow of 65‐155 cfs. The state issued a S401 certification requiring, among other things, a minimum streamflow between 100 and 200 cfs. The state supreme court upheld the restriction. The city and utility appealed to the US Supreme Court, which ruled that a state may impose conditions on certification under the Clean Water Act if necessary to enforce a designated use contained in the state's water quality standards.