LEGAL FRAMEWORK: Federal Law Guiding BPA Activities Affecting Columbia River Basin Fish & Wildlife
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Federal Law
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Citation
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Description
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Federal Water Pollution Control Act (commonly referred to as the Clean Water Act)
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33 U.S.C. §§ 1251-1387
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Provides for the restoration and maintenance of the Nation's waters. Authorizes
EPA to establish effluent limitations and requires permits for the discharge of
pollutants from a point source to navigable waters. EPA approves state and tribal
limits for the maximum amount of a pollutant that a water body can receive and still
meet water quality standards for specified purposes, including fish and wildlife.
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Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980
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42 U.S.C. §§ 9601-9675
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Provides for the cleanup of hazardous waste by imposing liabilities and duties on
responsible parties, including federal agencies, and by authorizing the federal
government to take cleanup actions in response to releases or threatened releases
of hazardous substances.
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Endangered Species Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 1531-1544
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Provides for the conservation and recovery of species of plants and animals that
the National Marine Fisheries Service or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determines
to be in danger of or soon to become in danger of extinction. Includes measures
to protect the habitats of these species.
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Migratory Bird Treaty Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 703-712
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Implements various treaties and conventions between the United States, Canada, Japan,
Mexico, and the former Soviet Union for the protection of migratory birds. Prohibits
taking, killing, or possessing migratory birds.
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National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
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142 U.S.C. §§ 4321-4347
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Enacts measures to promote efforts to prevent or eliminate damage to the environment.
Requires federal agencies to examine the impacts of proposed major federal actions
"significantly affecting" the environment.
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National Historic Preservation Act of 1966
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16 U.S.C. §§ 470
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Encourages agencies and individuals to develop historic preservation programs, and
requires agencies to oversee any historic sites under their jurisdiction and consider
the effects of its actions on historic sites. Provides for tribes to designate an
official to administer the preservation program on tribal lands.
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Bonneville Project Act of 1937
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16 U.S.C. §§ 832-832l
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Authorizes the construction, maintenance and operation of the Bonneville Project
to improve navigation on the Columbia River, and for incidental purposes such as
the production of electricity. Creates the Bonneville Power Administration (Bonneville)
and authorizes it to market power produced by the Project and to construct electricity
transmission lines. Requires Bonneville to set its rates in a way that considers
the recovery of the cost of producing and transmitting electric energy from the
Federal Columbia River Power System.
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Columbia Basin Project Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 835-835c-5
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Makes the construction of Grand Coulee Dam subject to federal reclamation laws discussed
in this table, and authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to take certain actions,
including the sale and exchange of lands and the administration of public lands
in the project area, to, among other things, protect project land.
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Federal Columbia River Transmission System Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 838-838k
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Directs the Secretary of Energy, through the Administrator of the Bonneville Power
Administration, to operate and maintain the federal electric power transmission
system in the Pacific Northwest and to construct appropriate improvements and additions.
Designates Bonneville as the marketing agent, with some exceptions, of electric
power generated by federal plants constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers or
the Bureau of Reclamation in the Pacific Northwest.
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Mitchell Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 755-757
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Directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish salmon-cultural stations in the Columbia
River Basin in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, and to carry out other activities
for the conservation of fishery resources in the Columbia River Basin.
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Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning and Conservation Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 839-839h
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Enacts measures to assure the Pacific Northwest of an adequate, efficient, economical,
and reliable power supply, and includes provisions for the protection of fish and
wildlife. Provides for the formation of the Pacific Northwest Electric Power and
Conservation Planning Council (Council) and directs it to, among other things, develop
a program to "protect, mitigate, and enhance" fish and wildlife of the Columbia
River Basin. Requires the Administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration to
take steps to "protect, mitigate, and enhance" fish and wildlife affected by the
development and operation of the Federal Columbia River Power System, while ensuring
the Pacific Northwest an adequate, efficient, economical, and reliable power supply.
Requires federal agencies responsible for managing, operating, or regulating hydroelectric
facilities in the Columbia River Basin to provide equitable treatment for fish and
wildlife with the other purposes for which these facilities are operated and managed,
and to consider in their decision-making process, to the fullest extent practicable,
the Council's fish and wildlife program.
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Federal Power Act
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16 U.S.C. §§ 791a-797, 798-824a, and 824b-825r
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Provides for the development, conservation, and use of the nation's navigable waters,
including the development of waterpower resources, and, to that end, requires federal
licenses for the construction and operation of certain nonfederal hydroelectric
projects. For projects using lands within federal land reservations, such as national
forests, licenses are subject to conditions established by the relevant land management
agency for protection of the lands. License conditions must include a requirement
for fish passage as prescribed by the Secretaries of the Interior and Commerce.
The license must also include conditions for the protection and enhancement of fish
and wildlife, based generally on recommendations made by federal and state fish
and wildlife agencies.
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Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act
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25 U.S.C. §§ 3001-3013
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Establishes a process for agencies to return Native American remains and associated
funery objects to lineal descendants and affiliated Indian tribes, and regulates
the ownership and control of Native American cultural items that are excavated or
discovered on federal or tribal lands after November 16, 1990.
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