Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill
Encyclopedia
Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill et al., or TVA v. Hill, 437 U.S. 153
(1978), was a United States Supreme Court
case. It is a commonly cited example of the canon of construction expressio unius est exclusio alterius (The express mention of one thing excludes all others).
started the building of the Tellico Dam
in 1967 on the Little Tennessee River
and was constructing the dam when an endangered fish species, the snail darter
, was found upstream. The Endangered Species Act
was passed by Congress in 1973 after construction of the dam had begun. If the dam project was completed, the resulting reservoir
would flood the snail darter's river habitat
- causing considerable harm to the fish.
, , occurred, and ruled that an injunction
requested by respondents should have been issued.
The Court held that pursuant to the Act's explicit provisions, the survival of the snail darter population required the permanent halting of the dam project. The Court noted that Congress intended endangered species
to be afforded the highest of priorities and to halt and reverse the trend toward species extinction
because the value of endangered species was "incalculable."
The Court further held that the continuing appropriations for the dam did not constitute an implied repeal of the Act (at least insofar as it applied to the dam project). The Court ruled that an injunction was the appropriate remedy because of "institutionalized caution" and the separation of powers
.
"After this case was decided, Congress made significant amendments to the ESA and there is now a provision for granting exemptions.
Two years after this case was decided, Congressional proponents pushed through an appropriations rider that expressly authorized completion of the dam notwithstanding the provisions of the ESA. The dam was completed, and the darters died out soon after.
The good news is that small populations of snail darters have been found in other rivers."
Case citation
Case citation is the system used in many countries to identify the decisions in past court cases, either in special series of books called reporters or law reports, or in a 'neutral' form which will identify a decision wherever it was reported...
(1978), was a United States Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
case. It is a commonly cited example of the canon of construction expressio unius est exclusio alterius (The express mention of one thing excludes all others).
Background
The Tennessee Valley AuthorityTennessee Valley Authority
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a federally owned corporation in the United States created by congressional charter in May 1933 to provide navigation, flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing, and economic development in the Tennessee Valley, a region particularly affected...
started the building of the Tellico Dam
Tellico Dam
Tellico Dam is a dam built by the Tennessee Valley Authority in Loudon County, Tennessee on the Little Tennessee River just above the main stem of the Tennessee River. It impounds the Tellico Reservoir....
in 1967 on the Little Tennessee River
Little Tennessee River
The Little Tennessee River is a tributary of the Tennessee River, approximately 135 miles long, in the Appalachian Mountains in the southeastern United States.-Geography:...
and was constructing the dam when an endangered fish species, the snail darter
Snail darter
The snail darter is a small , rare fish found in the waters of East Tennessee. It is a variety of darter which feeds primarily on aquatic snails....
, was found upstream. The Endangered Species Act
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
was passed by Congress in 1973 after construction of the dam had begun. If the dam project was completed, the resulting reservoir
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
would flood the snail darter's river habitat
Habitat
* Habitat , a place where a species lives and grows*Human habitat, a place where humans live, work or play** Space habitat, a space station intended as a permanent settlement...
- causing considerable harm to the fish.
Case
The Supreme Court affirmed a court of appeals' judgment, which agreed with the Secretary of Interior that operation of the federal Tellico Dam would eradicate an endangered species. The Court held that a prima facie violation of § 7 of the Endangered Species ActEndangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
, , occurred, and ruled that an injunction
Injunction
An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order that requires a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. A party that fails to comply with an injunction faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions...
requested by respondents should have been issued.
The Court held that pursuant to the Act's explicit provisions, the survival of the snail darter population required the permanent halting of the dam project. The Court noted that Congress intended endangered species
Endangered species
An endangered species is a population of organisms which is at risk of becoming extinct because it is either few in numbers, or threatened by changing environmental or predation parameters...
to be afforded the highest of priorities and to halt and reverse the trend toward species extinction
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...
because the value of endangered species was "incalculable."
The Court further held that the continuing appropriations for the dam did not constitute an implied repeal of the Act (at least insofar as it applied to the dam project). The Court ruled that an injunction was the appropriate remedy because of "institutionalized caution" and the separation of powers
Separation of powers
The separation of powers, often imprecisely used interchangeably with the trias politica principle, is a model for the governance of a state. The model was first developed in ancient Greece and came into widespread use by the Roman Republic as part of the unmodified Constitution of the Roman Republic...
.
Issues
The questions presented in this case are (a) whether the Endangered Species Act of 1973 requires a court to enjoin the operation of a virtually completed federal dam, which had been authorized prior to 1973 when, pursuant to authority vested in him by Congress, the Secretary of the Interior has determined that operation of the dam would eradicate an endangered species; and (b) whether continued congressional appropriations for the dam after 1973 constituted an implied repeal of the Endangered Species Act, at least as to the particular dam.Decision
The judgment finding that petitioner corporation's operation of a dam would eradicate an endangered species, and that an injunction was the appropriate remedy, was affirmed because endangered species were afforded the highest priorities, and continuing appropriations did not constitute an implied repeal of the statute as it applied to the project."After this case was decided, Congress made significant amendments to the ESA and there is now a provision for granting exemptions.
Two years after this case was decided, Congressional proponents pushed through an appropriations rider that expressly authorized completion of the dam notwithstanding the provisions of the ESA. The dam was completed, and the darters died out soon after.
The good news is that small populations of snail darters have been found in other rivers."
See also
- List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 437
- Snail darter controversySnail darter controversyThe snail darter controversy involved the delay of the construction of the Tellico Dam on the Little Tennessee River in 1973. On August 12, 1973, University of Tennessee biologist and professor David Etnier discovered the snail darter in the Little Tennessee River while doing research related to a...