Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife rejects fish passage waiver, putting project on hold A fish passage waiver was all that stood in the way of the city of Prineville and Ochoco Irrigation District moving forward on a hydroelectric power project on Bowman Dam. That waiver was denied by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife last fall, so the two local entities officially pulled the plug earlier this month, terminating its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission preliminary permit. "It's unfortunate," said City Engineer Eric Klann. Since passage of the Crooked River Collaborative Water Security and Jobs Act paved the way for hydropower generation on Bowman Dam, city and OID officials had been trying to get approval to build a 3-megawatt plant on the dam. The project cleared most hurdles but still needed to account for the affect the dam will have on fish passage along the river.