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Court Victory for California Water Quality and Rivers – and CSPA
On August 4, 2022, a panel of judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overruled the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), re-establishing California’s right to protect water quality in the Yuba, Bear, and Merced River watersheds for the next 40 years. Barring successful appeal, the ruling ends a three-year chapter in…
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D.C. Court Denies Waiver of Clean Water Act for Tuolumne River Hydro Projects; Ruling Vindicates CSPA and Allies
On June 17, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit issued a ruling denying waiver of Section 401 of the Clean Water Act in the licensing of two hydropower projects on the Tuolumne River. Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation District (Districts) had petitioned the Court to waive “water quality certification” for the relicensing…
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CSPA Develops and Supports Changes to Hydropower Licensing
CSPA has played a strong role over the last 12 months in developing and negotiating a package of proposed reforms to the Federal Power Act. The package will, if implemented, change a multitude of on-the-ground aspects of how the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) licenses hydroelectric projects. The package, with a short summary, was transmitted…
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CSPA Objects to Weakened Delta Water Quality without Strict Diversion Limits and a Ban on Transfers
On April 6, 2022, CSPA and allied organizations AquAlliance and California Water Impact Network filed a protest and objection to a “Temporary Urgency Change Petition” for April-June 2022 water operations in the Delta. The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the US Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) filed the petition on March 18. CSPA et…
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CSPA Tells Water Board: Limit Shasta Reservoir Releases and Sacramento River Deliveries in 2022 to Save Fish and Water in ’22 and ‘23
On March 16, 2022, CSPA presented recommendations to the State Water Resources Control Board to manage the Shasta and Trinity reservoirs and the Sacramento River in 2022. The State Water Board must act now to limit releases from Shasta Reservoir from April through November. Unlike last year, the State Water Board must assert its authority…
