ONRC Action v. United States Bureau of Reclamation

This appeal presents the question of whether the Bureau of Reclamation has violated the Clean Water Act by discharging pollutants from the Klamath Straits Drain into the Klamath River without a permit. The Klamath Straits Drain is part of the Klamath Irrigation Project operated by the Bureau in parts of Oregon and California. Based on the factual record, we conclude that the waters transferred via the Drain to the Klamath River are not “meaningfully distinct” from the waters of the river itself, as that term was used in Los Angeles County Flood Control Dist. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, — U.S.-, 133 S.Ct. 710, 713 , 184 L.Ed.2d 547 (2013), and South Florida Water Mgmt. Dist. v. Miccosukee Tribe, 541 U.S. 95, 112 , 124 S.Ct. 1537 , 158 L.Ed.2d 264 (2004). As a result, no permit is required. We affirm the judgment of the district court.

I. Background

The Klamath Irrigation Project (“the Project”) was authorized by Congress in 1905. Act of February 9, 1905, ch. 567, 33 Stat. 714 (codified at 43 U.S.C. § 601 ). It covers territory in Oregon and California, providing irrigation services to about 210,-000 acres of land through a complex system of dams, pumping…