A POLICY ANALYSIS OF FREE-FLOWING STREAM PRESERVATION IN NEW YORK STATE: CONFLICTS WITH HYDROELECTRIC POWER DEVELOPMENT

Conflicts between free-flowing river preservation and hydropower development will continue due to increased interest in and use of the nation's river resources for these and other uses, and the declining number of free-flowing rivers. This study focuses on New York State as a case study and utilizes the comprehensive nature of policy analysis and evaluation to investigate the four main objectives of the study. First, analyze the policies expressed in the National Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and the New York State Wild, Scenic and Recreational Rivers Act and generally evaluate the program performance and outcomes. Second, review the current status of hydropower development in New York State and the potential for additional development. Third, review the federal regulatory process for hydropower development, and assess the conflicts between hydropower development and river preservation interests. Finally, discuss the conflict in values and the potential for conflict resolution between free-flowing river preservation and hydropower development interests.;Two alternatives are presented to achieve greater consistency between the federal hydropower development policies and state free-flowing river preservation policies. The federal authority to license hydropower projects should not preempt state designated wild, scenic, and recreation rivers unless a full consideration of the values and interests of stakeholds and the general public has been first taken into account through a comprehensive planning process.;Achieving a balance between free-flowing river preservation and hydropower development interests will require the modification of some policies and programs. Such a balance must be attempted to allow for these important, beneficial, and competing uses of the river resources. The increasing competition for the use of the river resources will require a determination of the extent to which the resources will be allocated to the various competing uses. The present process of allocating use to free-flowing river preservation and hydropower development interests appears to be fragmented and incremental. A more comprehensive planning and decision-making process is in line with the existing free-flowing river preservation and hydropower development policies and would probably increase the net values realized by the stakeholders and the general public, if implemented.