State control over the destiny of hydropower development: PUD No. 1 v. Washington Department of Ecology
The debate over hydropower development exemplifies an apparent environmental unrest as proponents of hydroelectric power generation battle advancing arguments about the omnipresent potential such development has on watershed hydraulics and the environment. However, most would agree that the debate over hydropower development revolves around jurisdictional distribution and the authority to regulate development. For all practical purposes, hydroelectric licensing has been the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission`s (FERC`s or Commission`s) exclusive domain. The prevailing assumption after the Supreme Court`s interpretation of the Federal Power Act (FPA) in First Iowa Hydro-Electric Cooperative v. FPC was that the Federal Power Commission (FPC), now FERC, possessed ultimate authority over the regulation of hydropower development. This presumption was reaffirmed in California v. FERC (Rock Creek), decided almost forty years later.
- OSTI ID:
- 54348
- Journal Information:
- Energy Law Journal, Journal Name: Energy Law Journal Journal Issue: 2 Vol. 15; ISSN 0270-9163; ISSN ELJOEA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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