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
aa eonoen Ion of bacteria ooeurs
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 2 Mltohell Lake la net paanltt~a to mtar
in,
the X041 Jivar exoept during parlode or flooding
on the rlyr watrmhea. AS We WaUM.MtI it, the
PdfialPal ,oWotlon to Xlteh.11Lake water is the
green 007 muitionoa ebov'b.
“Sm.~tenlo offlolale lra mare or thm llmlted
eapaoltr or tholr 8mmes troatmurt iaoil.itire ma
plans lra now wa0mr ror t&r oonrtruotioa 0r rueded
impnwamonta: howo~or, aonaidr?ablo time will k
moma la oarqlng this i.apror~ent .program to
o&mpletlon. Lately, Baa Antonio ottislala lmro
infoxmed ua that ~dao to the lbaonoo OS haary ralna
la the Mo~Ilna Rlvor wataahad ?or a long pario of
tl.w aa lmo r enar rltoatlon haa lr la enwhorebr the
wator 10~01 & Uteholl Lake ia rory aoar the over-
flowing paint. It la toand that wlk!out the die-
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, the riolnlty as wall as result in objeotiori-
able quantltlea of ZSitohellLake 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
Eiirorin jwt arbr~oiant quantitiaa to mlntaln the
‘lake lavol at a sate point. Thoy have sooordlngly
roqueated poamlaslon rrom this DepaxQmnt to follow
luoh a prooeddilre.
98 should llka, thamfom, to hats an oplljoa
Fran your oifloa a8 to whathar oerrpingout the PM-
poaal aado b the olty oar ba authorizea under tha
lxla$laganJ -atroampollutionrtatut.8.”
We invite to Jour attention the pertinent prwlalona
or the atatutra of ~oxaa ralatlng to the lubjeot Of your ln-
UU-T~ Artiole 4444, RevisedCivil Statutes of Texas, made,
in part, M fbllowa:
aNo peraon, flzm or OOrporStlOn, prlVata or
munlolpal shall pollute lay water.oourae or other
pub110 boiy 0r water, by throwlng, aaatlng or da-
poaltlagor oauslng to 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 or water rroa whloh water la taken for the
norable Oeorgr W. Uox - Pa@ S i.
altohen, whrm wait. 011 find8 it8 ny into wotar
oouraaa 07 puT@loboaiao of Water, ohall be lq ulp p e6
with traps of rufflolentoapaolty to arrest the flow
or 011. In 80 fur a8 roneerr thr pmtwtloa of fish
and opstera .thebw, Flah and Oyafor Oomloaione~
or hio &eputly4 yg hare jurladlotlon in the onforoo-
mnt honor, The State Boazd of Hulth lhbll
mforoe the provlalon8 of thio lrtlolo.* + l ** .
(lkphaalo&do&)
Art1018 690b, ToRIon's Annotated Poaal O&e, reads,
part, as followrr
wSeotlon 1. It lhallbe ualmfal for any pornon,
firm, oorporatlon,uoooiatlon, town, olty or other
polltloal lubdltlolonof this State, or uy 'igent,
orflorr,emplo or mpraaeatatireor any peroon,
firm, oorporaton, uuolrtlon, towh,
I" oit or 0th.r
polltioal luMlvlalon of tkla-stute to poilate any
pirbllo,body of aurfaoe water of this St.t..
"9.0. II. 'Pollute' i.8horrbr doflno6 to be the
thmdn&, dloehr&n or Oth8mlOO pOnlttlry: to mooh
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 luldntor la thoroby rmn-
aaretlu&it for one or more of th8 btioflolaluooa
for WhlOh ooah wUtSr ma ift or ouitableprier to the
intmdwtioa o fluoh aubotanoo, naterltior.thlng,
or la $h.r.b~.r.d0na haDa?ulto publio boolth,
birds or game l@male, floh or bther ldlble lq uut ro
anlamla, or lnaangoro any whrf, or lnaaw.n or bin-
dora tho operation of any boat, or nadon lruanltory
or unoloan 04 bathing beaoh. .
'9.0. S. The tom QpubllabuQ of ourfoeewater
of thla State' shall lnolode ml1 larfmor oneko
r lr o r altruma,
, bqooa, lamoaa, &kU Ma bOdf.8 Of
lurfaoe watoa th a t are fe4 by a atroam or 8q-eoubjoet
to orerflow from or into a Stru8i whloh are ttie prop-
arty or the State OS Texas or any subalvlalon therebf,
Eon6nble brorgo W. ddx - Pago 4
sa dlll portionro r th0 wr 0sMaxloo ulthln the
&lfward boundary Of the State of Tone sad 811 lnlind
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 l.w.ge fram l4ltohellLake into the watora or tho
YaU.na River JW~ WpollutoW the waters or said river in .ontra-
ventlon to the 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 attontlonSeotlon67,
Volume S7, page 433, of Texas Jurlaprudenoa, and the author-
ltlea olted therein. Sala Saotlon retadlngas follows:
wee. 67. Public offloers and'governtrmntaland
admlniatratlvo Boards poaaeaa only a'uohpowea .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 Artlole44186, 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
several orri00m ana aitlaion8.* (Emphaalaadded).
The emphasized portion oi the above stat&e when
applied to the lnatant fatitsclearly manlfeeta th. L.g181atur.t3
intent to prohibit the State aoard or Health*a puraaln ox+
promulgating admlniatratlre re@.atlona inoonalatant wf th the
lxlatlng anti-po!lutlon ltatut88.
It follows from the above alted authoritlu that-
lrreapeotlvo or emerguioloa or impenalng almg.m ty Boards
. . -
or ~aaloalom dooignatod br-tho ltatutoa, an OonflnOd to
thooe p o nnlxpmooly dokyto4 to t,hembr th0 Leglolaturo and
tidFzo and art oontra~.~to thoao dologatea pomrn ulll bo
. I
Wo trust the l
bovij oatlafaotorll~ onoworo your ln-
Yours vary truly
BY /./ Boa b. Maddox
Approtd mr 19, 1946 Assistant
mwer sollerr
Attorney Q-en-al oilmoe /_
BDM:jtldjr Approved: Opinion Comuittoe
BYl HtfB
Chairman