Electron Hydro Loses Appeal Over Order to Remove Dam Spillway

Electron Hydro LLC must follow a district court’s order to remove part of its hydroelectric dam on the Puyallup River in Washington, a federal appeals court said.

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld the district court’s partial summary judgment and injunction against the company in an unpublished opinion filed Friday.

The district court properly ruled the dam’s spillway significantly impairs protected salmon and trout migration patterns in violation of the Endangered Species Act, and it was within the lower court’s discretion to order Electron to remove the center portion of the spillway, the appeals court said. ...