Case Information
*1 OFFICE OF THE AlTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
Honorable George W. COX, E. D.
State Health Offiaar
Texas State Board of Health
Austin 8, Texas
0plnlon lvo. O-6810 Re:
tremd ~tmge rr0m Lake into the Medlna
Dear Sir:
Your regueat
and reada, in part, as
r lnerease In 0urriaiant t in the ixirtlally blochamloal orygen Ion of bacteria ooeurs aa eonoen Tha oapaolty 0r Mltoholl Lake la llmlted and elnoe the rate of evaporation doss not spud the rate of inflow, it Is neasaeary that the oontonts be perlodloally dlsoharged to the Medlna Rltcr. Throqh an agreement with down&ream riparlan ownera, according to San Antonio officials, the
i . .
iionorablo Coozjp W. Cox - Pnga t
water in, Mltohell Lake la net paanltt~a to mtar the X041 Jivar exoept during parlode or flooding on the rlyr watrmhea. AS We WaUM.MtI it, the PdfialPal ,oWotlon to Xlteh.11 Lake water is the green 007 muitionoa ebov'b.
“Sm.~tenlo offlolale l ra mare or thm llmlted eapaoltr or tholr 8mmes troatmurt iaoil.itire ma ror t&r oonrtruotioa 0r rueded plans l ra now wa0mr impnwamonta: howo~or, aonaidr?ablo time will k la oarqlng this moma i.apror~ent .program to o&mpletlon. Lately, Baa Antonio ottislala lmro infoxmed ua that ~dao to the l baonoo OS haary ralna la the Mo~Ilna Rlvor wataahad ?or a long pario of tl.w aa l mo r enar rltoatlon haa l rlaen whorebr the wator 10~01 & Uteholl Lake ia rory aoar the over- It la toand that wlk!out the die- flowing paint. oharge ot some water from the lake, damage to the daa and dikes will Naalt with tha poaslblllty of a oomplste break Whlah would oauae the flooding of the oountry eldr in, riolnlty as wall as result in objeotiori- able quantltlea of ZSitohell Lake water sntorlng the Yedlna Riror.
"It 18 tha deeIre of the city of San Antonio; in order to avoid this danger, t3 pazmlt the graawl dlaoharge or water from xltohall Lake to the MadiLUi Eiiror in jwt arbr~oiant quantitiaa to mlntaln the ‘lake lavol at a sate point. Thoy have sooordlngly roqueated poamlaslon rrom this DepaxQmnt to follow l uoh a prooeddilre.
98 should llka, thamfom, to hats an oplljoa Fran your oifloa a8 to whathar oerrping out the PM- poaal aado b the olty oar ba authorizea under tha xla$lag an J -atroam pollution rtatut.8.”
We invite to Jour attention the pertinent prwlalona or the atatutra of ~oxaa ralatlng to the ubjeot Of your ln- Artiole 4444, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, made, UU-T~ in part, M fbllowa:
aNo peraon, flzm or OOrporStlOn, prlVata or munlolpal shall pollute ay water.oourae other pub110 boiy 0r water, by throwlng, aaatlng or da- poaltlag or oauslng be thmwn, oaet or de?&alted any orude petroleum, 011 or other like aubatanoa tharaln, or pollute any water oourae, or other pub- 110 body water rroa whloh water la taken for the *3 norable Oeorgr W. Uox - Pa@ S i. 011 find8 it8 ny into wotar
altohen, whrm wait. oouraaa 07 puT@lo boaiao of Water, ohall be l qulp pe6 with traps of rufflolent oapaolty to arrest flow or 011. In 80 fur a8 roneerr thr pmtwtloa of fish and opstera .the bw, Flah and Oyafor Oomloaione~ or hio &eputly4 yg hare jurladlotlon in the onforoo- mnt honor, The State Boazd of Hulth l hbll mforoe the provlalon8 of thio l rtlolo. * + l ** . (lkphaalo &do&) Art1018 690b, ToRIon's Annotated Poaal O&e, reads,
part, as followrr
wSeotlon 1. It l hallbe ualmfal for any pornon, firm, oorporatlon, uoooiatlon, town, olty or other polltloal l ubdltlolon of this State, or uy 'igent, orflorr, emplo or mpraaeatatire or any peroon, firm, oorporat on, uuolrtlon, towh, I" or 0th.r oit polltioal l uMlvlalon of tkla-stute to po i late any pirbllo ,body of aurfaoe water of this St.t..
"9.0. II. 'Pollute' i.8 horrbr doflno6 to be the thmdn&, dloehr&n mooh or Oth8mlOO pOnlttlry: or to bo -idr0au00a f nto any pabli. botll ,of rurraoo .water of thla state ULY 8ubmtan.o. rtorlal or thing la auoh qmntlty that tho l uld ntor la thoroby rmn- aaretl u&it for one or more of th8 btioflolal uooa for WhlOh ooah wUtSr ma ift ouitable prier to the intmdwtioa of l uoh aubotanoo, naterlti or.thlng, or la $h.r.b~.r.d0na haDa?ul to publio boolth, birds or game l @male, floh or bther l dlble l quut o r anlamla, or naangoro any whrf, or l naaw.n or bin- dora tho operation of any boat, or nadon lruanltory or unoloan 04 bathing beaoh. .
'9.0. S. The tom Qpublla buQ of ourfoee water of thla State' shall lnolode ml1 arfmor oneko rlr o ra, l truma, bqooa, lamoaa, &kU Ma bOdf.8 Of urfaoe watoa that are fe4 by a atroam 8q-e oubjoet to orerflow from or into a Stru8i whloh are ttie prop- arty or the State OS Texas or any subalvlalon therebf, *4 Eon6nble brorgo W. ddx - Pago
sad l ll portionr o r th0 wr 0s Maxloo ulthln the boundary Of the State of Tone sad 811 lnlind &lfward watora 0s the State 0s T.XM in whloh the tide ebbs and flowa.w The above quoted atatutu olearly and ammblguoual~
deolaie lllogal osrtain aotr deemed to *pollute= a pub110 body of oarfao. water ln thl8 Stat., and w. aaeumo'from the faota as stat& in four request that the. dlsoharge of th. partially treated .w.ge fram l4ltohell Lake into the watora or tho YaU.na River JW~ WpollutoW the waters or said river in .ontra- ventlon to statutes.
Th. mforoement of the atatutu, aupra, la the only funotlon whloh is therein delegated to, and 11.8 within the punlew or tho daalgn6ted Boards or Conbniaolona. In support of this propoaltlon we .lnYite to your attontlon Seotlon 67, Volume S7, page 433, of Texas Jurlaprudenoa, and the author- ltlea olted therein. Sala Saotlon retadlng as follows:
wee. 67. Public offloers and'governtrmntal and admlniatratlvo Boards poaaeaa only a'uoh powea .a ar. expzeaely oonrerred upon thun by law or ase mma- eerily implied fmm th. powers so oonf.rmd.W' In oonroanlty ilth this .general atatmmut of the law, there appear. in Artlole 44186, Vernon*a Annotated Clvll Stat- ut.8, the following language:
u* * * He (Stat. Health OfflO.r) ah.11 have the power with the approval 0r the 'state Board 0s Health, ,to pursue and pramlgixto auoh adm&nlatratlrr rules and regulations, not laoonalatbnt with an law or the State, 08 may bearM8ed n.oeaaary~ xl?
uvrwmnoe of the datl.8 lmpoaed by thla .zrc- other law upon the State Department of Health and lto (Emphaala added). orri00m ana aitlaion8.* several
The emphasized portion oi the above stat&e when applied the lnatant fatits clearly manlfeeta th. L.g181atur.t3 intent to prohibit the State aoard or Health*a puraaln ox+ promulgating admlniatratlre re@.atlona f w th the inoonalatant xlatlng anti-po!lutlon tatut88.
It follows from the above alted authoritlu that- lrreapeotlvo or emerguioloa impenalng almg.m ty Boards *5 . . - ~aaloalom dooignatod br- tho tatutoa, an OonflnOd to
thooe p onn l xpmooly dokyto4 to t,hem br th0 Leglolaturo and thoao dologatea pomrn ulll bo tidFzo and art oontra~.~to . I the bovij oatlafaotorll~
Wo trust onoworo your ln- Yours vary truly /./ Boa b. Maddox BY Assistant Approtd mr 19, mwer sollerr oilmoe /_ Q-en-al
Attorney Approved: Opinion Comuittoe BDM:jtldjr BYl HtfB
Chairman