HYDR CURRENTS

摘要

A bill introduced to the Senate in late January would adjust the spending cap on dam safety improvements for infrastructure managed by the U.S. Department of Interior's Bureau of Reclamation. Senate Bill 1946 - introduced by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and co-sponsored by Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii - would amend the Reclamation Safety of Dams Act of 1978. Previous revisions to the 1978 act currently set the limit at US$1.4 billion in annual dam safety spending for close to 480 Reclamation-owned dams and dikes in 17 states. With that money, 85% of most dam safety improvements are covered by the federal government, with the remaining tab picked up by the operator.