SECTIONS 6020-6028 - California Statutes

FISH AND GAME CODE

SECTION 6020-6028

6020. This article shall apply only to conduits with a maximum flow
capacity of 250 cubic feet per second or less of water, other than
those conduits described in Section 5987.
If this section is for any reason held to be unconstitutional,
such decision shall not affect the validity of Article 3 of this
chapter and the Legislature hereby declares that the persons owning
conduits referred to in this section shall be subject to the
provisions of Article 3 of this chapter.

6021. The department shall examine new or existing conduits, and
may install, maintain, repair, and replace fish screens, bypasses, or
other devices to prevent the passage of fish through a conduit, when
in the opinion of the department such a screen or device is
practical and necessary. The owner of a conduit shall grant to the
department the right of access to the conduit for the installation
and maintenance of the screen, and shall provide the department with
an easement for a site for the installation of the screen or device
deemed suitable by the department. The owner shall also supply
sufficient water for a bypass to carry fish stopped by the screen or
device back to the channel from which they were diverted, and an
easement for the bypass channel, but such easement shall not require
the acquisition or leasing of additional lands by the owner. No water
for a bypass shall be required if the channel from which the water
is diverted is dry or incapable of supporting fish life below the
point of diversion.

6022. Sufficient water for a bypass shall be not to exceed the
following:
(a) Diversions under three cubic feet per second capacity shall
not be required to bypass more than 18 gallons per minute.
(b) Diversions of three cubic feet per second or more, but under
10 cubic feet per second, shall not be required to bypass more than
30 gallons per minute.
(c) Diversions of 10 cubic feet per second or more, but under 20
cubic feet per second, shall not be required to bypass more than 40
gallons per minute.
(d) Diversions of 20 cubic feet per second or over shall not be
required to bypass more than one-half of 1 percent of the capacity of
the diversion.
(e) Diversions built by the Government of the United States and
requiring bypasses longer than one-quarter mile shall bypass such
amount of water as is necessary to return fish to the permanent
channel satisfactorily.

6023. The department shall serve written notice upon each owner of
its intention to install a fish screen, and shall describe therein
the distance downstream from the intake or in other manner the
location of the screen, the access required, and the amount of water
required for the bypass. The notice shall be served upon the owner in
duplicate, and in such form that the original copy upon signature by
the owner shall serve as an agreement to the installation of the
screen or device under the terms therein, and shall require the owner
to render such assistance, other than mechanical repair or
replacement of parts, necessary to keep the screen or device in
satisfactory operating condition. The hiring of additional labor
shall not be required for such assistance.

6024. If the owner fails to sign and return the agreement granting
the department the necessary rights for the installation of the
screen or device within 60 days after its service on him, the
department may install the screen as though the agreement had been
signed unless a decision of the Department of Water Resources is
requested. In the event the department and the owner of the conduit
cannot agree upon the type, size, mesh, or location of the screen or
device, the amount of water required for a bypass, or the time within
which the screen or device shall be installed, the matter shall be
submitted for determination to the Department of Water Resources,
whose decision thereon shall be final and conclusive. The Department
of Water Resources shall render its decision within 60 days after
either the department or the owner has submitted the matter in
writing and requested a decision.

6025. It is unlawful for the owner of a conduit to cause or permit
a screen to be removed or taken out of place, except for repairs or
cleaning, while water is running in the conduit, or to operate the
conduit with the bypass closed when the screen is operating as
provided in this article.

6026. Any screen installed under this article shall be such as will
be reasonably adequate to prevent fish from passing into the conduit
and will not unnecessarily impede the flow of water or prevent the
owner from diverting the amount of water he is legally entitled to
divert.

6027. This article does not prevent the department from removing or
permitting an owner to remove a screen or close a bypass during any
part of the year when the department finds that such action will not
endanger fish life.

6028. All money paid by the department to the owner of a conduit
pursuant to this article shall be paid out of the Fish and Game
Preservation Fund.